One Sided
by gibbsxzivaxtony9761
Summary: Auggie's been in Eritrea for 4 months now with Parker while Annie has spent the last four months hoping from op to op. What happens when their paths meet in a dangerous mission that could cost them their lives? Will they finally admit to their feelings?
1. Chapter 1

Annie POV

"We are beginning our decent into Washington, please fasten your seatbelts."

That was the voice that jolted me out of my dream.

For a moment, I was momentarily disoriented. My back felt sore and my head was pounding, but once I opened my eyes and was met with the familiarity of a commercial air line, I relaxed. This had been more of a home to me now than my apartment was for about four months.

Four months. Four long, cold, emotionless months; four months of jumping from one flight to another, four months of dodging bullets and assassins with a different voice guiding me in my ear. Four months without hearing from the only voice I had wanted to hear since _he _left.

_Wonder what you're doing right now?_

I sighed, preparing myself for the decent into Washington, its been a while since I had been to DC.

_Wonder if you're thinking of me?_

I unbuckled my seat belt and opened the overhead to take out my one lone duffel and the carryon, following the line of tired first class business men towards the entrance.

I checked my watch, 2:15 AM. If I wasn't on this plane, I thought, then I'd be lying awake.

_Wonder how you're holding up?_

I walked out of the gates, watching as a couple embraced, turning my head away. I felt every muscle in my body protest as I tried to drag my duffel bag over my shoulder, forgetting that I had already torn it.

It's been four months since I've allowed myself to feel what hurts and what doesn't and boy was my body protesting. It seemed as if every step I took made my muscles flame up.

I slowly made my way out to the parking lot, putting my carryon in the back of the corvette. _His _corvette. I had managed to get rid of everything that reminded me of him except his car. I just couldn't; the engine was too damn nice.

I threw the car into reverse and slowly rolled out of my parking space, smiling slightly as the engine gave a responding purr. The car seats still smelled like him, I realized, and my foot slammed on the break.

"Pull it together, Walker," I mumbled, and put the car into drive, speeding out of the empty parking lot adjacent to the airport and joining the cars on the highway, speeding towards Langley.

_Wonder if you ever dream of me?_

I slowed as I approached the security checkpoint, handing the guard my credentials. He let me in with a wave and I parked in my usual place, and got out heading towards the imposing CIA head quarters.

As soon as I opened the doors into the DPD, I was met with absolute silence.

It was understandable, it was after all, around 3:00 AM now. Everyone would be gone by now; everyone, that is, except Joan. If he were still here, then he would be sitting at his desk waiting for me like he had been for over a year now. Until he left.

I walked into Joan's office, handing her my reports, totaling up to over seventy pages; hey, who said it was going to be short? It's been four months, right?

"Annie, wait."

I stopped mid-step, my back already turned away from her.

"Yeah?"

I turned back around, sitting in the chair she motioned me towards with a little wave.

She leaned across her desk, her arms folded.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

"It's been a long day."

"You mean it's been a long four months."

"I'm fine," I repeated, my voice monotone.

"Annie, there were several times where we could've lost you in those four months, you should see one of the counselors we have here."

As if I didn't remember. It had been four months of having a different voice in my ear, not _his _voice, but Stu's.

I shook my head, "I can handle it. I'm ready for the next op, if you guys need one."

There was a light pause.

"When was the last time you slept?"

I shrugged, "A few minutes ago on the plane, why?"

Joan shook her head, her eyes boring into mine, "No, I mean really slept, as in you slept in a bed for the whole night."

I opened my mouth, ready to say last night, but when I thought about it, I honestly couldn't remember when I had "really slept."

"You're not fine, we both know that Annie."

"But I'll be fine, as long as I have something to do," I answer her quietly.

I would rather be running from destination to destination than have time to think about _him, _having to think about all the chances when I could've told him how I felt was worse to me than being shot. I would rather not sleep, because if I slept I would dream of him and I at Allen's just hanging out. I would rather not stay home because even at home I still have flashbacks of our good times together.

"Come in tomorrow morning an hour late and I'll see if we have anything we can give you," Joan answers reluctantly.

"But I mean it when I say you should really sleep, take care of yourself Annie, I can't afford another loss."

I nod, knowing exactly what she's referring to. We both knew Auggie wasn't coming back.

* * *

><p>I looked in the bathroom mirror, stark naked, my eyes tracing over the yellowing bruises on my shoulder and the dark purpled ones along my collar bone. I scanned over my thigh, seeing an ugly bruise developing and realized that I had sprained my ankle.<p>

I hadn't felt any of this today.

_That's because you got used to feeling_ nothing._ You had four months, after all to get used to it._

I stepped into the shower, letting the hot water try and soothe my sore muscles and try and wash away my already sad thoughts.

_Wonder if you're ever coming back._

I began to think, what if I had told him before he left, would he have stayed with me? What if I had told him before the mission, would things have been different?

And above all, I wondered, what if he had _stayed._

The tears that I had been holding back for so long finally escaped, mingling with the water. I leaned my head against the cool tile, my body shaking with silent sobs and pain. I continued to stand in the spray until the water began to cool, until my tears finally stopped.

I turned the water off, disoriented for a second; I had grown so used to the crappy motels that my own apartment now looked alien.

I grabbed a towel and toweled myself dry, stepping into the bathrobe I had hung on the door. I came out of the bathroom and immediately crawled into bed,

I was completely exhausted, but as I had predicted earlier, I couldn't sleep. So my mind began to drift off to people and events I had kept locked up so tight in my head. The main subject now, was Auggie.

The pain of him leaving literally felt just as fresh as the day he had actually left, leaving me with a sarcastic remark: _"I can literally hear you smiling."_

"No Aug," I whispered, now semi-unconscious, "I wasn't smiling."

My heart had cracked, but he hadn't heard that. He was already walking off, each step he took took him further away from me. Each step made the tears I was keeping back slide down my face.

"I miss you."

I fell asleep with his name on my lips

* * *

><p>I breezed into Langley in the morning, all traces of last night's tears gone.<p>

"Annie."

I turned and Jai Wilcox fell into step beside me, a folder tucked under his arm.

"Been a while."

I nodded, "Yeah, been kinda busy. How's running Special Ops treating you?"

He shrugged, "Fine, better than being told what to do all the time."

We both slid into the elevator, him hitting the eleventh floor and me hitting the tenth.

"You haven't been here in a while, what's up with that?"

"I had a lot of work to do."

I waited for the elevator to open up, my stomach churning; he wanted something, or he had something to tell me.

"Well, I was wondering-

"Can you get to the point, Jai?" I cut him off sharply, and seeing his surprised and slightly hurt expression, backed off.

"Sorry, got back pretty late last night. I guess I didn't get enough sleep."

He nodded, his cool demeanor back on, "It's fine. I was just wondering if you knew where Anderson was."

I felt my breath catch in my throat and had to remind myself to breath before I answered him.

"No, where is he?"

Jai shrugged, "I don't know, heard he's still in Eritrea, at the Peace Corps."

I laughed, "The Peace Corps? That doesn't sound like him."

I still couldn't say his name.

He shrugged just as the doors opened. "Just what I heard," he paused, looking at me funny, "Isn't this your floor?"

I nodded, "Yeah, by Jai."

I walked out, slightly flustered.

"Annie," I looked up to see Joan, her hair and dress immaculately perfect as usual, "A word."

I nodded and walked up the stairs, joining her in her office.

"Yes?"

"Last night you asked me if I had an assignment for you, well something just landed and needs our immediate attention. We have an operative captured deep in the horn of Africa, near the red sea. A hangar will take you out to Eritrea, from there you will be going to the Peace Corps stationed and ask around for some information, they must've heard something. Once you know, you -

Someone cleared his throat behind us.

I turned to see Jai Wilcox leaning against the door frame.

"I believe you forgot to mention that I would be accompanying Annie."

I felt like a kid being stuck between her parents.

"You and Jai," Joan began again, her voice dripping with ice, "will be going. You have an hour to pack and get back here. Good luck."


	2. Chapter 2

Joan POV

I calmly walked into Arthur's office, my head held high as I walked right up to his desk.

"Why didn't you tell me that Jai was going to be in on this?"

He put down the file he was reading, taking off his reading glasses in one swift movement.

"It was in the fine print."

"Damn, Arthur, we both know very well that I didn't have time to read the whole entire case summary before I had to give it to Annie. Now I'll ask you again, why didn't you _tell _me?"

He sighed, rubbing a hand over his eyes, "Because I knew that you would say no. You don't understand, Joan, Jai is a good field operative, and Annie is going to need all the help she can get to just get back home in one piece. Now I respect that you're trying to protect her but-

"I'm not trying to protect anybody, I just want to know why you assigned Jai and not Marshalls or Stevens, they're both qualified."

I dug down deeper, looking him in the eye, waiting to see if my previous assumptions were true.

"Arthur," I whispered quietly, my tone softer, "Please be honest with me."

We glared at each other

, I felt his eyes become soft once again. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I assigned him to this because I needed a little bird to tell me what exactly is going on there. He requested the mission before I could even put out fliers to look for someone. I don't trust him, Joan, but I know that he would never get Annie killed."

I was silent for a minute as I contemplated what I had just heard.

"If you needed information on what was going on, you could've just asked me," I replied coolly.

He shook his head, "You aren't going to be there every minute of every day; he is."

I leaned over his desk, laying my hands on the sleek mahogany.

"What makes this op so much more different that you have to get Jai involved when he has his own department to run?"

"If this goes well, it could just possibly save both our jobs."

He went back to looking at the file.

Annie POV

The hangar rocked back and forth, the roar of the engine deafening as we cruised through the air.

"How you holding up?" Jai yelled over the noise.

"I'm fine!" I answered, looking back over the case files.

The operative that we were sent to reach actually wasn't an operative; he was an asset, one that was caught while doing a simple switch with one of our agents. He had originally worked in the Peace Corps but has been missing for 2 weeks now.

I couldn't concentrate; maybe it was because of the shaking hangar that gave me the sense that we were falling out of the sky, or maybe it was because I was going to see him again for the first time in four months.

The thought made my heart clench; what was I going to say? How was I going to keep things professional?

I was so caught up in my thoughts that when the plane did a sharp ninety degree turn, I almost fell forward, the only thing keeping me from tumbling around the hangar was Jai's arm, flung across my collarbone.

I tangled my hands in the netting and gave him a nod of thanks, waiting for the plane to settle down.

Suddenly, the co-pilot approached us, giving Jai a quick nod.

"We're beginning our descent into Eritrea, get ready."

We both nodded, and I felt my heart beat in my throat as the plane suddenly began to drop. I bit my lip to keep the little moan from jumping out of my throat as we continued to fall. My hands twisted themselves even more firmly in the netting, hoping that this would be over soon.

As if on cue, we hit the sandy desert, jolting me backwards.

I waited for the roar of the engines to shut off before removing my earmuffs.

"First time in a hangar, Annie?" I could practically hear the smirk in Jai's voice.

"Yeah, not fun," I mumbled, slightly out of breath as the doors of said cursed piece of transportation opened.

Immediately, we were enveloped in the stinging brightness of the morning sun, making me feel immediately over dressed.

I grabbed my duffel and followed Jai out of the hangar, turning away as it took off, leaving us in the middle of the desert.

"Our ride should be here any minute, so hurry up and change," Jai ordered, throwing my way a pair of cargo pants and a tight green t-shirt.

At my incredulous look he laughed, "What, did you expect to go into the Peace Corps with a blouse and a skirt?"

"Turn around," I mumbled as I quickly pulled my blouse off and slide into the t-shirt, noting the way it fit me like a glove. I shimmed out of my skirt and pulled on the pants.

"I said don't look, Jai," I tossed over my shoulder.

He cleared his throat, "Sorry."

I had a feeling he wasn't sorry at all.

Suddenly, the roar of a Jeep came our way, making me look up from lacing my boots.

"Ride's here!" Jai called, picking up both our bags, he quickly approached the vehicle. I followed behind him, quickly getting into the back.

"Anderson, nice to see you again."

I froze. No. No, this can't be it already, I can't run into him _now._ It can't be him, what are the chances that he would be picking us up?

"Wilcox, can't say the same."

That was his voice. The smooth baritone and the sarcasm that flowed so smoothly from his lips like water was hard to miss. Plus his distinguished cologne, though faint, was still detectable.

I allowed myself to turn slightly and look over my shoulder, to see the ends of his soft brown hair curling at the nape of his neck. I couldn't see his face.

"Well, if you're not glad to see me you should be glad to know that—

I caught Jai's eye and quickly gave him a shake of my head, putting my finger to my lips to tell him to be quiet.

He mouthed a silent why but I just shook my head in return.

"Cat got your tongue, Jai?"

Jai cleared his throat, "Sorry, I thought I saw something up ahead. Turned out to be just a scorpion."

Auggie nodded, "Yeah, there's a lot of them here. Damn things always got in my way."

A silence hung in the jeep as the driver, still a mystery, throttled on towards the camp. I kept my breathing shallow and looked straight ahead, watching the tents of the Peace Corps suddenly sprout from the never ending grains of sand.

"We're here, home sweet home," Auggie chirped, getting out of the jeep.

I followed him and felt his hand brush against my arm, making my breath catch in my throat. Time stopped.

I didn't have to turn around to know that he had frozen to the spot where he was standing, just like me.

"Parker, what are you doing? Let's go."

_Parker? Who the hell was Parker?_

"Auggie what are you talking about, I'm right here."

I turned around to see that our mystery driver was now in front of us, turning back and giving him a questioning look. She walked back towards us and smiled at me.

"I'm sorry, you might not know it, but Auggie's blind, he thought you were me for a second."

I nodded, plastering a smile to my face, _so this is why you're still here, Auggie, I thought._

Now I knew why he wasn't coming back; because he was happy here, he had finally found a girl that he was genuinely in love with. And that girl, by fate, wasn't me.

Auggie POV

I hopped out of the car, my hand brushing up against soft skin. Suddenly, my breath caught in my throat. I caught a faint whiff of . . . no . . . it couldn't be . . . grapefruit?

I instantly began to feel for that same contact again, wanting to hold onto it, but I couldn't find that soft skin anymore. The sun's getting to you, I thought.

"Parker, what are you doing? Let's go," I called, assuming that I had accidentally brushed up against her by mistake.

There was a light pause, "Auggie what are you talking about, I'm right here."

Her voice sounded directly northeast of me, a few yards ahead. That couldn't have been her. Then was it really her? Was it really Annie?

I felt a familiar hand grasp my bicep again and almost sighed in defeat.

"I'm sorry, you might not know it, but Auggie's blind. He thought you were me for a second."

I froze again, who was she talking to? It wasn't Jai, so who else had he brought along?

I refused to let myself hope, trying to remain neutral, waiting for the mystery operative to respond with bated breath.

When she didn't, I felt Parker tug me along. I turned back, trying to desperately see who the person was, but knew that it was futile.

_Was it really Annie?_

Annie POV

The way she grasped his arm, the way he fell into step beside her, it all looked so natural. She was good match for him too, I realized, she would take care of him.

_Then why the hell do I feel like crap?_

Because he didn't even know that you were there, I answered, bottling up those feelings for later. I had plenty of time to mourn over my own heart when I got home to my empty apartment, where no one would hear me.

Jai fell into step beside me, a good five yards separating us from Auggie and Parker.

"What's going on?" He whispered in my ear.

I shook my head, "I don't want him to know that I'm here yet. It's best if he doesn't."

"Why? He's going to find out eventually, and he does he'll be super pissed and super thrilled."

"I'd rather just lay low for now, it's better if he doesn't know I'm here."

_It's better if you don't have to face him, that way, there's a less likely of a chance you'll get hurt. _


	3. Chapter 3

**OK, this little chapter is going to involve a lot of Annie and Jai time because 1. She doesn't really want to be near Auggie right now 2. He's busy with his own duties at the Peace Corps and with Parker and 3. Annie and Jai need to go over some things concerning the mission ahead. **

Annie POV

The desert air whipped mercilessly at my bare skin, making me grind my teeth as we approached the tent. The air was so dry that it made it almost completely impossible to breath; yet when I had taken a look around, everyone had seemed very comfortable and accustomed to the air.

"Why the hell are you limping?"

I walked into the tent and turned ever so slightly to answer the pissed off Indian.

"I sprained my ankle."

"Then why the hell are you even here? You're a liability, Annie. Joan shouldn't have brought you on this."

I sighed, sitting down in one of the chairs set up, glaring at him with my arms crossed over my chest.

"I'm fine, Jai. I requested it and Joan obviously trusts that I can do my job," I barked out.

"Oh, so she _knows _that you sprained your ankle and possibly tore your shoulder?"

I cursed his observation skills.

He sighed and when I didn't immediately answer, he threw down his bag and took out the first aid kit, clicking it open, he took out the gauze and medical tape.

"Roll up your pants, I don't want you aggravating it even more," he commanded, in alpha male mode.

I was about to protest but the look he gave me made me keep my mouth shut and do as he said.

He bent down at my feet, assessing the injured area, his fingers surprisingly light and gentle as they probed the slightly swollen and bruised part of my ankle. After a few minutes, he took my foot in the palm of his hand and bent it so that it was completely straight.

"Don't move," he instructed as he began to slowly roll the gauze around from my foot up to my ankle, binding it tight and sealing it off with medical tape.

"Annie, Annie, what am I going to do with you?" He mumbled under his breath as he got back to his feet.

"How does that feel?"

I tried to turn it a little and winced, "Stiff."

He smiled, "Good."

I answered him with a glare and took out the file from my bag, the CIA insignia immediately smiling up at me.

He pulled over a chair and sat in front of me, picking up his own discarded file.

**Summary: **Two agents (Walker, Wilcox) will be sent to Eritrea in search of intel on a missing asset. They will be going in as translators to help with the translations that will be needed in the Peace Corps. Once this intel is gained, Wilcox is to call in using the satellite phone provided and a hangar will be dispatched in around thirty minutes. Then, follow your intel to your asset (Hamit Abdul). Expected periodical check ins are three times a day.

**Time: **You will have about three months to complete the mission; preferred time for completion would be a month and a half.

**Distress Signal: **Call three times and each time hang up on the second ring.

"Well this doesn't look too bad," Jai mumbled, interrupting me from my thoughts.

I scoffed, "Yeah, well get on to the third page, half of it is black out."

He nodded, "It's need to know, and apparently we don't."

I began to skim through the third page, trying to fill in the blanks when his voice interrupted my thoughts once again.

"Annie, you have to let Auggie know that you're here soon. He'll find out anyways."

I nodded, swallowing against the lump that had suddenly formed in my throat.

"I will, but right now he doesn't have to know. He isn't exactly going to be helpful towards any of this, right?"

He hesitated before answering, closing up the folder and setting it aside, he looked he looked me in the eye.

"Annie, as much as I hate to say this, what you and Auggie have is special. You don't make many friends like him in our line of work, hell, in _any _line of work and it's best for you and for him if you hold on to it. Now if you don't want it, and you choose to throw it away, well that's your choice. But you should know that you're throwing away something that only comes once in a life time."

He gave me one last meaningful look before getting up and looking towards the entrance.

"I'm going to introduce myself to everyone as the translator, you try and keep your weight off of that for as long as possible," he paused, "and think about what I said."

He walked out of the tent, closing the flap behind him and leaving me to go through what he said again.

_Get the hell off your ass and go talk to him, Walker!_

If only it were that easy. Suddenly, I felt the full force of exhaustion from the last four months hit me like a tidal wave, and all I wanted to do was sleep.

_"When was the last time you slept?"_

I tried to answer Joan's question in my head as I crawled into one of the bunk beds, but still drew a blank.

I let the dark, sweet, waters of unconsciousness pull me under and succumbed, letting the water fill me up until I was in a deep sleep.

Jai POV

I ducked underneath the entrance of the largest tent, pleased to find that everyone seemed to be in there having lunch.

"Hi, I don't believe we've officially met."

I turned to see a girl with bright brown eyes, her hand wrapped around Auggie's bicep.

So, I thought, this is why you left Langley.

"Jai Wilcox, I was assigned to be one of your translators," I stuck my hand out and she shook it delicately.

"Hi, I'm Parker. Auggie didn't tell me that you guys knew each other," she said, turning towards him.

"Oh yeah, I know him, we go _way _back," Auggie laughed, an easy grin on his face.

I nodded, "We butted heads a few months ago when Auggie and I both worked together."

"Oh, who was that girl with you just now?"

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Auggie's eyes light up with surprise and he tilted his head a little more, trying to listen to what was undoubtedly going through my mind.

"Oh, she's a rookie, I'm showing her the ropes, you know. Testing out her language skills to see if she's qualified," I smiled, "Now, how do things work around here?"

"Well, since you're a translator you and your friend can start working on the letters we've gotten from the local villagers asking for help and medical supplies. Since there's so many people that need help, our translators can't seem to finish reading them all so you guys will be doing us a major favor," Parker smiled at me again.

I nodded, "It's my pleasure, and do you guys have a schedule that I should be aware of?"

She shrugged, "Not really, just go into the tent with the red cross flag on it and your work should be waiting for you, thanks again!"  
>I nodded, and quickly rushed off, but before I could get out of the tent, I felt a strong hand grasp my wrist, pulling me back.<p>

I didn't have to turn around to know that it was Auggie. Did the guy use sonar?

"Parker, give me a minute. I wanna catch up with him, alright?"

She nodded and quickly went off to talk with the people sitting at the table.

"Who did you bring with you, Jai?"

I shrugged, putting on my cool demeanor, "You're not read in, Auggie."

"The hell I'm not. Is it Annie?"

His voice sounded almost frantic when he said her name, he sounded as if he were pleading and begging me.

"It's need to know."

I yanked myself away from him and walked out of the tent, my brow furrowed. This was going to get messy even quicker than I had expected.

Annie POV

I felt someone's hand on my shoulder, insistently calling my name and putting the slightest pressure on me.

"Annie, come on, get up,"

I cracked my eyes open and met brown ones and a mouth curved into a smirk.

"You almost slept through the whole day, it's almost sun down. Aren't you at all interested in what I found out?"

I nodded, propping myself up on my elbows and wincing at the dryness in my throat and the soreness in all my limbs.

"Well, Abdul was one of the translators here apparently and when their camp moved a few weeks ago, he got lost in the shuffle which is pretty weird considering that they had a documented file on him and didn't send out a search team."

I shook my head, "What do you mean 'had?'"

"I'm trying to figure that part out. I could really use some help, you know," he prompted.

I nodded again and swung my feet over the edge of the bed and into the boots, lacing them up.

"Water?"

He handed me a bottle and I swallowed about half of it in one gulp.

I got to my feet and quickly walked out of the tent, shivering slightly in the quickly approaching night air. I stopped for a second to watch the sunk sink underneath the horizon, watching as it painted to sand red-orange.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Parker said, coming up behind me.

I nodded, "Yeah, it really is. It's so peaceful too; I just wish everything here would be like this sunset."

She nodded back, "I wish it would too. I don't believe I caught your name before."

I smiled, "I'm Annie, one of the new translators, I came with Jai."

"Oh yeah! I didn't see much of you today; you're the rookie, right?"

I laughed; of course Jai would make himself seem so much more important than everyone else.

"Yeah, I guess I am. Which tent am I suppose to be working in?"

She gestured towards the tent with the red cross flag, "That one, you'll be helping Jai with the medical supplies that will be needed by the villagers."

"Alright, it was nice meeting you!" I called over my shoulder as I turned away and walked into the tent.

Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye I saw someone coming up behind me.

I turned instinctively and almost ran into one of the other translators; or so I thought.

"Oh, sorry," I breathed, about to step out of his way when he caught my wrist.

"Annie?"


	4. Chapter 4

Annie POV

My breath caught in my throat at the sound of my name. I looked up to see a pair of soft brown eyes, the same brown eyes that had haunted my dreams for the first two months. They will filled with . . . was that a hint of hope?

I didn't trust myself to answer and tried to pull away, tears making my throat close up.

"No, Annie, please, is that you?"

God damn that voice, I thought, his voice sent shivers up and down my spine. His voice was something my dreams were never spot on about, it was always muted.

To think that I had almost gotten over how hurt I was the day he left; it was all rushing back now.

_"I can literally hear you smiling."_

That day seemed like years back in time, but the pain was still just as fresh as right after those words left his mouth.

"Annie, say something."

I was jolted back to my present predicament.

"Where are the letters?"

It seemed an innocent enough question.

What I hadn't expected as an answer was being pulled into his embrace, his arms locking around me tight, my head surprisingly fitting perfectly into the crook of his neck and shoulder. Suddenly, everything seemed right in the world.

"Annie, I missed you," he whispered, his lips so close to my ear that his breath tickled a few stray strands of hair that came loose from my pony tail.

I began to pull away from him, and when he felt me resist, his arms immediately fell to his sides.

Slowly, still mute, I began to back away from him, tears in my eyes.

"What's wrong?"

I shook my head, knowing that he couldn't see.

"You left."

He immediately began to walk towards me, his hands out, trying to find me again.

"You left for four months, Auggie," I choked around my tears, "you left me your car and I never heard from you ever again. I didn't even know where the hell you were going. If I hadn't decided to take this mission, then I would've probably never seen you again."

He was quiet for some time and I watched the wave of emotions pass over his face. The first one was shock, then morphing into realization, and finally setting into guilt.

"Where you ever going to come back?"

I didn't recognize my own voice; it sounded so small, so childish.

I waited for him to answer, and when he didn't, I got all the information I needed. I began to walk deeper into the tent, away from the entrance, away from him.

"Annie let's sit down and talk about this," he called from the opening of the tent.

I turned my back to him, finding the pile of letters with my name on it and a post-it stuck to the first one probably from Jai, I began to make my way out of the already empty tent.

"I have a job to do."

"This conversation isn't over."

After waiting a few minutes, I heard him walk back towards the entrance and heard the tent flap open, and then close. I was left in silence.

I let the tears fall, one by one, landing on the front of my shirt, glistening like small little diamonds before blending in with the dark green material.

_Do your job, Walker._

I took a deep breath and pushed my feelings into a box, scanning around the tent, I found an appointment book on the side.

Checking to make sure that no one else was here, I quickly flipped through it, scanning the list of names for the files manager.

Finally, at the very bottom, penciled in, was the name Stephen LaMonica.

I flipped back a to a few weeks ago to make sure that he had handled the files then too and closed the book, placing it back on the desk.

I walked out of the tent, wiping at my fallen tears.

Auggie POV

She has every god damn right to be pissed at me, I thought as I walked out. But for some reason, I couldn't get past the fluttering in my chest, I had seen her again! Well, not _seen _her but I felt her next to me. God, I didn't realize how much I missed that.

I missed the way she used to gently take my elbow and lead me around the desks back in Langley; it seemed like a lifetime ago, I missed how we used to go to the bar almost every Friday. I missed her, just in general, everything about her.

_"You left."_

I couldn't see her face but I didn't need to, to know that she was crying.

She sounded so broken that it almost broke my heart. I wanted to turn back and walk back in there, take her in my arms and apologize several times over but there were a few things that stopped me.

_You were happy here for four months with Parker, so who says that you can't forget your feelings for Annie and build a life with someone else? It would be so much easier to officially send in your resignation to Joan and just stay here with Parker. Maybe eventually get married._

Yes, it would be easier, I mused, but would I be happier? Would she be able to constantly test my boundaries like Annie had? Would she be able to make me feel the way Annie made, and still makes, me feel when her skin brushes against mine? Would she understand why I'll always feel like another piece of me was left back in DC in Langley, always waiting for Annie to come and get me and tell me that I'm OK?

"Probably not," I thought.

Jai POV

I was roused from the sound of the tent opening and immediately sat up, my hand closing around the small Glock I kept underneath my pillow.

"Just me."

The voice came closer and suddenly I was met with a blurry, yet recognizable head of long blond locks and bright brown eyes. These eyes were filled with tears.

"Annie," I mumbled, throwing my legs over the side of my bed.

She immediately backed up and I saw her hand hastily wipe away the tears that were still in her eyes.

"Shariff Osamad has been handling the files for the Peace Corps for over a month, so he should know what happened to Abdul's files," she told me, her voice under control.

I nodded, storing that information up for later. I quickly assessed her situation, and realization quickly hit me.

"He found out, didn't he?"

She hesitated for a second and nodded.

Without another word, she climbed into the bunk next to mine and crawled underneath the covers. I watched as she tried to settle in and get comfortable, standing by the entrance.

"I'll take first watch, get some rest, Walker," I whispered and sat at the mouth of the tent.

I waited a few minutes and heard the inevitable sob come from her mouth when she thought I wasn't listening. I couldn't help her with this, I told myself, she has to get over this on her own. She would never forgive me if I helped her.

I sighed, getting up and walking out of the tent, standing outside, trying to give her as much privacy as possible.

I looked around the camp, everything was silent, the once bustling, loud tents were now only disturbed by the occasional wind. I looked up into the night sky, the moon hung in an elegant crescent in the navy blue backdrop, flooding the camp with light, making the sand seem silver.

I leaned against the tent ever so slightly, mulling over what Annie had just told me. Tomorrow morning would be out first check in, and until then, all we could do is wait; I already had theories on who this Shariff guy could be, but without a background check from Langley, I couldn't be sure.

Annie POV

_The moon cast an eerie glow on the camp, making everything seem silvery-white. _

_I walked around the tents in a daze, seeing the tents, but not really seeing them._

_I heard footsteps behind me and turned, only to see that there was nothing there. I continued on my enigmatic like journey, until suddenly, there was a crash, jolting me and making me jump. _

_I looked around to see that suddenly, the eerie calm that had settled around the camp was now being disturbed, and bombs were dropping from the air, setting tents on fire. _

_I watched, as if a spectator to the show, as Auggie ran with Parker towards one of the waiting vehicles when suddenly, a shooter appeared._

_Everything became so clear, to the point where I saw the bullet being fired and watched as it entered his chest, blowing a hole straight through the size of my fist. _

"Auggie!" I cried, springing up from the bed.

I looked around the silent tent, searching for him, momentarily disoriented as I stared into the darkness, waiting impatiently for my eyes to adjust.

When they did, I saw that it was empty, and it was still just as quiet as it had been when I had first crawled into bed.

"Just a dream," I told myself quietly, trying to soothe the quickening beat of my heart.

I looked at my watch; it was already 5:04 AM. Knowing that I wouldn't be able to sleep any longer I flung the covers aside and pulled on my boots. I pulled my shirt off and pulled out a similar looking one from my duffel that was laid at my feet.

There was a note stock to it.

Annie-

By the time you're reading this it's probably around 5 am. Meet me in the breakfast tent for a quick debriefing. I think I found something.

Jai

I folded the note and slipped it into my pocket. I got up slowly, testing out my ankle to find that it surprisingly didn't throb as much as yesterday. Slowly, I walked towards the opening of the tent, taking a deep breath, I walked into the searing sun.

I took in the buzzing actions of the camp, people shouting orders and walking from tent to tent, everyone looked preoccupied. Suddenly, as if drawn by a madnet, I found him walking towards a larger red tent, Parker at his side, conversing with her easily.

Who knew being in the same camp as the man you loved was the same as being a whole country away?


	5. Chapter 5

Annie POV

I walked into the large, almost overcrowded meal tent, the buzzing of voices making my ears rings. I quickly scanned the crowd of long tables and found Jai leaning towards a pretty, tan dark skinned woman.

As I approached them, I felt a smirk forming on my lips as I began to plan out my trick.

"-thank you Brenda, I try my best to keep in shape," he flirted, throwing her a charming smile.

I cleared my throat, "Jai, sweetie, I hope you aren't trying to run away from me again."

The woman, Brenda, looked up, slightly alarmed and then looked back at Jai with disgust and gathered her things, walking away to find another seat.

He sighed, "You caught me, darling, I'm sorry."

I gave him a small chuckle, "So what was your little note about?"

He tossed me his untouched apple, I quickly caught it, looking at him quizzically.

Suddenly, he leaned in, his lips brushing along my temple, making me instantly want to recoil.

"Eat your apple, wait ten seconds and meet me a little bit outside of the camp about ten yards away from our tent," he whispered in my ear, pressing a light kiss to my cheek.

I nodded and waved goodbye to him as he exited.

I chewed on my apple thoughtfully, counting out the seconds in my head.

1 . . . 2. . . 3 . . . 4 . . .

"So, you and Jai are together, huh?"

I turned, and watched as Parker took the empty seat that Jai had left open.

I laughed, "Not really, he just has a tendency to flirt and I have a tendency to be too nice."

She laughed back, "Well he isn't bad looking, I'll give you that one. Where did you guys work, again?"

I mentally flipped through my files, "Trans-America," I took another bite of my apple and looked at my watch, "Gosh, sorry, I should go and get a start on the mounting letters waiting for me. I kind of slept through most of the day yesterday. We should talk more sometime though!"

I quickly got up, finishing the last bite of my apple and tossing it into a nearby trash can.

"Nice meeting you!" I called over my shoulder and watched as she waved goodbye.

Auggie POV

"Auggie, over here!"

I followed Parker's voice, using my laser can to guide me to her. I took the empty seat next to her and smiled as she pushed something into my hand that resembled a banana.

"Good morning," I told her, giving her a small smile. The events of last night, of meeting Annie again after so long, were still running through my brain.

"Hey there, sleepy head! I didn't want to wake you since you seemed kind of tired out last night," I felt her small hand slip into mine and I squeezed It reassuringly.

"Thanks, so what's on the agenda today?"

"Well, I just heard from Brenda that Jai, one of your past co-workers, and Annie, his trainee, just might have some chemistry. You know him, right? Do you think it's possible?"

I froze, my hand wrapping around the banana tightly, almost to the point of choking the poor fruit. My blood began to boil, there was no way in _hell _Annie would fall for Jai's tricks, she is too smart for that.

_Really? Or are you just afraid that she's replaced you?_

That too, I thought.

"No," I stated firmly, "Absolutely not. Jai's a flirt but he would never actually settle down into a relationship."

She laughed, "Really? Because Brenda told me that when she was talking to him Annie came over and chewed him out for flirting with someone else. Even kissed her cheek a few times."

I choked on my breath, clearing my throat, I felt a slight flush rush up my neck and cheeks. Damn that cocky son of a bitch; he wouldn't hurt Annie like that, god dammit, he wouldn't! She wouldn't fall for him, she knows that he's just playing her like he plays everyone of those college girls back in DC . . . she does know that, right?

"Aug, what's wrong? You're flushed," I felt her hand slip from mine and laid it across my forehead, "Auggie you're burning up, are you ok?"

I nodded, "Yeah, guess I'm still not used to the air around here," I mumbled and stayed quiet throughout the rest of breakfast.

_Even kissed her cheek a few times._

That line played over and over in my head; I pictured Jai with his dark features and Annie with her fair complexion and golden hair, together. It made my stomach turn and I laid the banana on the table, untouched, and walked out of the tent without another word.

Annie POV

I jogged over to wear Jai was talking quietly into his satellite phone, probably to Arthur or Joan.

"-yes, his name is Shariff Osamad. That's him, thanks Bill."

He ended the call and turned to see me coming towards him and opened his arms in an embrace.

"Welcome home, _darling_," he joked, giving me a wink.

I scoffed, "Cut the bull, Jai, you're taking the joke to a whole different level here. What did you need to see me about?"

"I got some brand new intel on our files handler, Shariff. He speaks Farsi and his brothers are part of some radical political change group. There were case files from the FBI that matched Shariff's description but every time they tried to find him, he would worm his way back to his brothers and left the FBI with a cold case."

"So where is this bastard?"

He shrugged, "I don't know, Annie, this is a big camp. But when we do find him, which could take days, in which case we'll just shake the info out of him and get him a hangar straight to the FBI. Less of a mess that way, well, for us, that is. After that, I just checked with Joan and she wants us to immediately depart, claiming that our services are needed else where and we'll begin our search for Abdul."

I sighed, "Not much of a plan here, Jai."

He nodded, "I know, I wish I could've gotten more intel but this is off book so it can't be passed on to the rest of tech ops except for a select few."

"So we'll just be taking off, and we won't be coming back?" I asked tentatively, already knowing the answer.

He paused in his examination of the sand underneath his feet and met my eyes.

"Annie, I know what you're getting at and the answer is that we have a job to do and Auggie isn't part of it. I need you to focus on this mission, Annie, because there are so many things that can go wrong but I need to know that your dedication won't be changing. If you can't do that, I'll call up one of our assets and get you on a plane back to Langley right now."

His tone was perfectly serious and calm, not even hinting on which option he preferred that I take.

"Jai I can do this, but what if Shariff is their way in to attack the Peace Corp?"

He sighed, "Annie, our mission is to get Abdul out and back with us to Langley, and this is just what I'm talking about! You're not dedicated, you're letting your feelings get in the way of the mission!"

"Well I'm sorry that I'm not a robot, Jai! He's my best friend, I can't just leave him here with the possibility that he might die!" I cried, advancing towards him so that we were nose to nose, well, nose to chest for me.

His brown eyes were almost black, burning with anger and aggravation.

We glared at each other for a few minutes, meeting at a stalemate, neither one backing down.

"Fine," he ground out, "I'll ask my source to check in on the group's plans. But this is the only time I'll be asking him for information on something that doesn't involve the mission, so you just used up your free card."

I crossed my arms over my chest and watched him dial, walking away from me to make the call.

_So, despite it all, he's still your best friend._

I sighed, how could August Anderson, a man that left me for another woman, for four months without even trying to contact me, still be the one man that had all of my heart? Well, I shouldn't be surprised there, Ben managed it, didn't he?

Jai POV

"Sorry Bill, I just need another small favor. Does this political group we talked about earlier have any intentions of attacking the Peace Corps in Eritrea?"  
>My eyes scanned the plain desert landscape, watching as the wind blew little waves into the otherwise still sand.<p>

"Hm, I don't see anything with a red flag but I'm being blindsided by their government so I can't tell you much about what they're going to be doing. Sorry Jai."

I sighed, "It's alright, Bill. Thank anyways."

I clipped the phone shut and turned back to Annie to see that her eyes had kind of a glazed look to them and her arms were folded so tightly across her chest that she looked as if to be sinking into her own skin and quickly disappearing.

"No word on their actions yet; Billy can't get me anything," I told her, walking back towards her.

My aggravation from a few minutes ago hadn't completely dissipated. I needed to know if she could handle this. I needed to know that she had my back.

All I got was a quick nod.

"Damn, Annie, so can you do this or not?"

She glared at me, "You don't even need to ask, Jai. You know I can."

With that said, she turned back towards the camp and I followed, mentally contemplating how long it would take for the hangar to get here and take her away; I wasn't sure that she could separate her feelings from her work right now.

Joan POV

"Come in," I called, quickly closing the manila folder just as Arthur walked in.

"Arthur, what brings you to my department?" I asked, leaning forwards.

"Joan, did you get Auggie's resignation yet?'

"No, what makes you think that he'll be resigning?"

We both knew why, I thought, I just hoped that he would change his mind.

"Well, it's been roughly four months now, right? He only has two weeks left of vacation time. If he planned to come back, wouldn't he have called?"

I couldn't argue with that logic.

"Give him time, Arthur," I whispered, and watched as he came closer, perching on the corner of my desk.

"Joan, I know he's a good leader and you think half the world of him, if not more, but the truth is that he isn't going to come back. So either pop him the question today or wait for two weeks and be even more disappointed."

He laid his hand on my shoulder and pressed a quick kiss to my lips, "I don't want to see you worrying about him anymore."

With that said, he left.

I sighed, feeling the weight of the world somehow increase on my shoulders as I picked up the phone, dialing Auggie's company phone. Thank god for satellites.

It rang twice, then three times, until finally . . .

"Hello?"

"Auggie, it's Joan, how are you?"

"Joan," I could detect the surprise in his voice, "wow, it's been a while. It's great here, hot, but otherwise great."

I kept my voice as the conversation progressed onto more personal subjects such as the work he was doing and how much he liked it.

"How are things back at the DPD?" He asked, I heard the voices in the background gradually fade away and assumed that he was going to somewhere more private.

"Busy," was my reply.

There was a light pause.

"Joan, how come I wasn't notified that Annie and Jai are here on assignment?"

I sighed, dammit, I didn't think they would be meeting up so soon.

"To be honest, Auggie," I began, dropping the bomb, "I don't know where your loyalties lie anymore; with the agency or with the Peace Corps. You weren't read in because it was need to know and frankly, you didn't. Now, the reason I called was to ask you this: you're vacation time is almost up, you have two more weeks left, to be precise; are you coming back to the agency? Or should I expect your resignation to be emailed?"


	6. Chapter 6

Auggie POV

I sighed, rubbing a hand over my sightless eyes. I had been thinking of this very question for almost a month now, and have yet to reach a conclusion.

"To be honest, Joan, I don't know. There's so much I like here but there's so much I left unfinished in DC and it's already catching up with me. Can I give you my answer in a week?"

"You're running out of time, Auggie, I'll let you have your week but this is purely out of professional courtesy, one that I am not likely to extend again. Good bye."

I listened to the dial tone for a few seconds before hanging up myself and stowing the phone underneath my pillow.

_There's so much for you at Langley._

I choked out a wry chuckle, yeah, there definitely was a lot I had left unfinished back in Langley. For one thing, I wondered what it was that Annie was going to tell me the day I basically just gave her my 'vette and left. There was a part of me that still wondered if this was the right thing to do. I was content, yes, but I wasn't as happy as I was back in Langley.

_So the choice is simple, yes?_

No, I argued with myself, it is so far from simple.

On one hand, I had Eritrea and Parker, a girl that I could see myself settling down with and having a family with. On the other hand, I had Annie, the woman that I had believed to be so beyond my reach for months now, and scolded myself every time I thought about her in any romantic way. Those feelings, I kept locked up in a box, one labeled **do no open.**

_What if you let those feelings out? What would happen then?_

And that was the root of the problem. I couldn't; I had kept them locked up for so long that letting them out now was like letting down the last wall I had. I couldn't handle that type of hurt. It would hurt just as bad, if not more, than when I had that conversation with my doctor those four months ago, hearing him saying that I wasn't a qualified candidate for the stem cell research just about made me crack.

If Annie knew about how I felt and turned me away, I would be even more devastated. I ran a hand through my already tussled hair, my thoughts jumbling together.

Annie POV

"Target spotted," I murmured into my Bluetooth, hoping that Jai would be able to hear me.

"Turn up the charm, Walker," was his response.

I walked towards Shariff, a smile on my face. He looked up as I approached, giving me a polite smile and going back to his translations.

"Hi there," I leaned on the edge of his wooden desk, "can you help me out with some of these words? I'm kind of new here."

"Of course," he obliged, his accent immediately gave away that he was a native Farsi speaker. Perfect.

I lead him to my desk, away from the others.

"Remember, if you can't get him to talk or slip something, I'll be coming in myself and shake him out when everyone is asleep," Jai reminded me, his teeth gritted. I could tell that he didn't like being in this camp as much I did.

I pulled out the letter I had scribbled to him in Farsi, it read:

_This is your only chance to tell me what your group is planning and what happened to Abdul, if you don't, there is a very large chance that the next time we meet, I will not be as polite._

I watched as his eyes scanned over the paper, narrowing when he read through it twice.

"What is this garbage," he hissed, "I know nothing of what you are speaking of."

I leaned in towards him, my eyes narrowed and I rose to my full height, towering over his short stature.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. So either start talking now or I assure you that you'll be sent on a one way flight to Gitmo."

"Who are you?" He asked instead, his eyes narrowed into cold slits.

"I'm the woman that controls where you spend the rest of your life right now. If you tell me what happened to Abdul and where he is, I will pretend that we never even had this conversation," I matched his cold, accusing tone.

He hesitated and that was the only confirmation I needed, plus the way his eyes darted around the room was a dead give away too; he felt trapped. Keep pushing, I told myself.

"This deal won't be offered to you again. When I find him, and trust me, I will, I'll make sure that when you arrive in your cell you will have both your legs broken," I threatened.

He took a slight step back, "You would not do this to me, you are a lady!"

I laughed, it sounded like a bark, "So? That isn't going to stop me. Now, I am going to ask you one more time, Shariff, where is Abdul?"

He swallowed, visibly paling, "Keep going east of here away from the camp for about twenty miles, when you hit the Red Sea banks, you should see a small hut. We were keeping him hostage hoping for a trade off; we did not harm him, I swear on it! We just needed more money."

"Who is this _we_?" I pressed on.

His face immediately hardened, slightly, "I cannot tell you that."

Before I could continue to press he added quickly, "Our numbers have grown over the past year, I do not know everyone."

"Annie, that's all we need. Stand down and give him the line that was protocol to close this up."

"Fine," I ground out, "if you tell anyone of this conversation then I promise you a team will be tracking you for the rest of your life. You'll have to go into hiding and be constantly on the move, so best to keep your mouth shut," I told him, closing everything up and giving him a bright smile, projecting my voice slightly.

"Thank you, I knew that I was reading it wrong, I really appreciate you help!"

With that said, I walked away from a stunned, son of a bitch. I walked out of the tent and ignored the sun's burning rays as they seemed to sear through my shirt.

Suddenly, a hand snaked out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me behind a tent. I immediately flew into attack mode, grabbing my opponent's wrist and twisting it behind his back.

"I surrender, don't kill me!" Said a sarcastic voice.

I looked up and was met with soft brown curls and immediately, I released my hold on his skin as if it were on fire. He, unfortunately, did not let go of mine.

"Annie, I told you that our conversation wasn't over. I've been looking for you everywhere, where have you been holed up in?" Auggie asked, a small smirk touching his lips.

I cleared my throat, "How did you know it was me?"

He shrugged, "You may be wearing different shoes, but your perfume is still there even if it is extremely slight. Now, I need to explain to you why I ran."

I shook my head, "You must've had a good reason, Auggie and I completely understand. But, why didn't you call at least . . . once?"

It was absolutely amazing how I could shake down a potential terrorist and not be able to face this man without my heart fluttering nervously in my chest and my voice cracking in the slightest way.

He sighed, "Annie, the day you got back from Stockholm, I got a phone call. I had recently been a candidate for stem cell research; it would've potentially given me my sight back. My doctor called and he said I wasn't eligible. That just about crushed me; I left on such short notice because to be honest, I didn't want to face all the disappointment I had left back in DC and all the regrets."

My breath got stuck in my throat, "Why didn't you tell me? I could've helped you."

He shook his head, "I couldn't let that much disappointment fall on you. It was my bullet to take and I took it like a man. I just . . . didn't realize how much I would miss you until you showed up. I guess it's true, the heart grows fonder with separation, or something like that."

The smirk was now a small smile that made my heart melt.

Cautiously, still unsure, I wrapped my arms around his neck, breathing in his comforting smell, "I missed you like hell, Auggie," I whispered in his ear.

I felt his arms wrap around my back, "I did too, Walker, I did too."

We pulled apart after a few seconds and I saw that small smile turn into a full blown grin. I loved that smile, I thought.

"So, how long are you staying?" He asked.

I hesitated, to be honest, I was pretty sure that I was leaving tonight.

"Not long, really. When are you coming back to Langley?" I asked, dreading and anticipating the answer.

I watched as his face darkened, "I don't really know if I'm coming back yet," he answered quietly.

Before I could even process what he said, he continued.

"I'm . . . happy here, Annie, there's no stress from the job, everyone is so open and nice, and I think Parker and I . . . could potentially have something. Hell, I wouldn't have flown half way across the world if we didn't, right?" he chuckled.

I didn't laugh back.

_You knew that this was a major possibility, no, you knew that this was _definitely _the reason why he stayed in Eritrea. So why does it hurt so much when he says it out loud?_

"Oh," was all I could managed, and my arms around his neck dropped and I took a small step back, "I see."

"No, Annie it's not that I won't visit, it's just . . . " his sentence trailed off.

_It's just that I won't be there every morning to bring you coffee, it's just that I won't be the one talking you down from a panic attack when you have the possibility of dying, it's just that I won't be your best friend any more._

"It's ok, I understand. Well, I hope you have a nice life here, Auggie," I told him sincerely, he deserved happiness, even if it wasn't with me.

I felt tears prick the corners of my eyes and refused to make another sound until I felt like I had my voice under control.

"I'll miss you," I whispered.

"I'll miss you too."

With that, I walked away.

Jai POV

"I'm . . . happy here, Annie, there's no stress from the job, everyone is so open and nice, and I think Parker and I . . . could potentially have something. Hell, I wouldn't have flown half way across the world if we didn't, right?"

I felt my mouth drop open, despite the theories I already had of those two being together, having them realized was absolutely incomprehensible; after all those nights at Allen's and all those sparring sessions, I had expected Annie and Auggie to be together.

I listened for her reply, knowing that it was wrong and I should take off the headset, but I couldn't.

She didn't answer for the longest time and I wanted to smack Anderson for not realizing it.

"Oh, I see," her voice sounded way off. It was neutral and calm, but it didn't take a spy to figure out that she was extremely disappointed.

"No, Annie, it's not that I won't visit it's just . . . "

_Just what? You're just going to not come back for at least a two years after you realize that you don't love her? That what you have with Parker is absolutely nothing compared to what you have with Annie? I mean Jesus, the whole DPD had been placing bets on when you guys would get together!_

I couldn't take it anymore and shook my headphones off, sighing, I threw them on my bed. Who knew someone so intuitive could be so damn blind.

I began to pack, we were both leaving tonight, even if I have to drag her by her hair with me.


	7. Chapter 7

Annie POV

I walked out into the hot desert air, almost suffocating me. I felt the tears pricking my eyes threaten to spill over and hastily blinked them away. The flurry of activity had increased, and as if in a daze, I dodged every person coming towards me, heading to the tent where Jai and I were staying. I wondered if he heard the whole conversation.

As soon as I stepped into the tent, I was greeted with the sight of him packing up what little he had brought with him.

He looked up as I entered, his face set.

"Start packing, Walker. We leave right before sunset. I have a contact meeting us here with a car."

He met my eyes and I thought I saw a sign of sympathy pass through them. So, I thought, he had heard us.

I nodded and walked to my bed, tugging my suitcase out from underneath my bed. I pulled the little Lady Colt from underneath my pillow and put it into my ankle-holster. I looked around and found the picture I had hidden underneath the mattress.

It had been taken a few months ago, but those months felt like they were years in the past. It was of Auggie and I, at a baseball game, his arm slung casually around my shoulder and an easy smile on his face. I smiled slightly at the memory and slipped the photo into my suitcase as well.

"You'll be alright, Annie."

I jumped, I hadn't heard Jai cross the room. He sounded like his lips were right at my ear, I realized that what he had said wasn't a question; it was a statement.

"Yeah," I whispered, zipping up my suitcase and shutting my emotions into a tight locker that was sure to explode sometime soon.

"I heard what he said," Jai began, I turned to see that he looked slightly out of place, "and I want you to know that once this whole mess is cleared up, I'll come back here with you and kick his ass for being so stupid."

I cracked a small smile, "It's alright, Jai, we'll probably be needed elsewhere. No point in coming back here if it's not for a mission."

Jai POV

My eyes widened slightly, her voice had gone neutral again, but I could tell that there was an underlying pain hidden behind those words. She still loved him, I realized, and felt for her. It made me want to kick his ass even more for breaking her like this.

I squeezed her shoulder tightly, "Annie, you'll get through this, I know you will. If you need someone to talk to, I'll be here for you."

With that said, I walked out of the tent, jogging towards the tent where Parker and the others were staying. As soon as I walked in, I almost mowed the brunette down.

"Oh! Jai, I was just looking for you, there's -

"Annie and I are leaving," I cut in softly, trying my best not to deck the blind guy next to her.

"What?" She had a confused expression on her face, "But you just got here! What happened?"

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Auggie flinch at my words.

"There's an emergency at our company, apparently they lost our papers getting in here and the embassy is demanding our return. God, I know it's on such short notice, I just wish we could've stayed longer," I feigned hurt.

She sighed, "It's alright, it's not your fault. Will you guys be back?"

As if on cue, hope immediately lit up Auggie's face. I felt slightly bad for what I was about to say next, but quickly brushed it off.

"Probably not, we have so many assignments as is, they'll probably send someone else here if anyone else volunteers. Otherwise, you guys won't here from us again," this statement was directed towards Auggie, "I just wanted to let you know."

"Well it was nice meeting you, we're all sorry to see you go. I know Auggie was looking forward to spending some more time with you," she sympathized.

I nodded, "Likewise."

With that said, I walked away from the couple and out of the tent, containing my furry but just barely.

A few Hours Later . . .

Annie POV

The roar of the jeep as it came to us was deafening compared to the relatively silent night. The wind that it created tugged at my ponytail and swirled sand at my feet. The night was merciless and as the sun was just barely touching the horizon, the wind picked up.

"Austin!"Jai called, we were on the outskirts of the camp, bags in hand, as we climbed aboard the Jeep.

"Jai, you're running out of favors," our travel companion growled.

I turned to look back at the quickly disappearing camp behind us, reflecting on what I was leaving behind.

_Do you even know that I'm gone?_

The Jeep sped away quickly, making the cluster of tents with the fires glowing around it seem smaller and smaller, until it was just barely a blimp in the sand. He was there, I thought, I regretted not telling him I was going, but would he have really cared?

_I wonder if you'll miss me months from now._

We bumped along the sand dunes, our driver listening to the direction that Jai had received from Bill, back at Langley. In the few hours before we had left, Bill had gotten us the exact location of the camp, though there were several like it scattered in the desert.

The ride was strangely silent, with only Jai's voice filling in the driver breaking me from my thoughts.

"Get some rest, Annie, we should be there when the sun rises," Jai whispered in my ear and I nodded, closing my eyes. I thought that sleep would never come but finally, the fatigue in my body won out and I dozed in a dreamless sleep. No feelings, no dreams, just black.

Jai POV

We sped along the night, and as we continued on towards the camp, my thoughts began to turn towards the woman sitting next to me. Over the few years she had accumulated at Langley, we had gotten to know each other; not on the level she had gotten to know Auggie, by no means, but we had grown closer. I realized that I was starting to have feelings for her; more friendly and strangely protective.

As she slept on, I saw her face tighten with pain and immediately wanted to wake her up and ask about her sprain, but realized that it was probably an emotional wound rather than a physical one.

Suddenly, I felt the satellite phone Joan had given me vibrate and ring and quickly picked it up.

"Yeah, what's up, Bill?"

`"Jai, we have some news. The terrorist camp is beginning to show some signs nuclear activity. I had a helicopter circle once around them a few hours ago and the pilot told me that from the radioactive signals he got, they're building a bomb."

I cursed under my breathe.

"Austin, how long before we get there?" I whispered to the driver.

He shrugged, "Five, six hours?"

"Make it four," I growled and was immediately thrown back against my seat.

"They have your asset, the pilot saw him being dragged towards the doorway to relieve himself but I don't think this is a regular political revolution group," Bill continued.

"Then what the hell are they?" I demanded.

There was a light pause, "Assassination, would be my guess."

"Do we have any idea who they're targeting right now?" I asked, looking towards Annie to see that she was beginning to stir.

"Well, this is just my theory but since we're assuming they're an assassination group and they captured one of the assets at the Peace Corps that just happens to have ties to us, my guess would be someone in the corps that has a strong position at the CIA."

I knew what he was talking about, he didn't need to say the name.

"She was right," I whispered quickly, my eyes widening.

"Who was right?"

I turned towards Annie to see that she was now awake, rubbing her eyes and blinking rapidly to clear her vision.

Ignoring her, I pressed on for more information, "How fast can you guys get a team out to the peace corps located in Eritrea? The one we just left?"

There was a pause, "I don't know, I would have to ask Joan or Arthur about that one. Eritrea is off limits for now, Jai, you guys are off book. The only way to get people there is if they volunteer and can keep it a secret, otherwise we can't."

That was the answer I dreaded.

"They're going after Auggie?" Annie asked, her voice hard and her eyes almost icy.

I hesitated, "We aren't sure yet but chances are they might be."

"Dammit, Jai! I told you that this could happen, we should've stayed and -

"Annie, our mission is to get our asset out, didn't we already go through this? What will happen in that camp in Eritrea does not concern us. As far as we know, the intel could be wrong!"

She glared at me, "You're really willing to bet that? Because if you are, then you're not the man I thought you were."

I sighed, rubbing a hand over my face, "Bill, you still there?"

"Yeah, Jai, what do you need?"

"I want a check- in every hour on the group's activities and I want a copter circling them and giving me their location. If they move, hell, if they so much as _breathe _I want to know about it."

We were now going to fight two wars, I realized.

"God," I mumbled to no one in particular, "This is going to hit the fan soon."


	8. Chapter 8

**i would like to take the time to thank all of you that reviewed, so thank you guys so much! **

Annie POV

As soon as Jai hung up the phone, I pounced on him.

"What the _hell _is going on?" My voice was hard and unrelenting; I needed to know if I was right or not.

He gave me a cold look, but his gaze quickly softened.

"There's a possibility," he began, emphasizing the word possibility, "that Auggie could be in danger. But I have Bill on it, if anything happens, the copter that's circling overhead should catch it and come down on them. We need to focus on the mission, Annie, don't let this distract you."

I nodded, but how could I _not _let it distract me? How could I keep a level head when Auggie could be in danger? He was still my best friend, and it's not like he intentionally tried to hurt me; it just ended up that way.

As long as he stayed safe, I realized, I wouldn't care who he's with, I just hope he's happy.

"I know you're worrying, even in the dark I can see the wheels turning in your head," Jai prompted, once again pulling me from my thoughts.

I shook my head, setting it on straight again.

"What's the plan when we get there?" I asked him instead, looking towards the horizon, we still had a few hours to go before the sun came up and revealed us.

"We're stacking the place out for a day and when night strikes, that's when we make our move and get Abdul out of there. Bill gave me a decent map out of the camp from an aerial prospective, they have a few cars parked behind a pretty big cement building. Austin is going to smuggle us into the camp saying he's transporting cargo that Bill laced before we got here with a few cameras and we should be in."

I nodded, taking it all in, "How is exactly is he going to smuggle us in? We're in a jeep, for Christ's sake!"

"Well, pretty lady, you and the prince here will be getting' in the trunk, where I personally installed a little hatch for the two of you to crawl into underneath the amo," Austin drawled.

"Why are we supplying them with more weapons?" I asked Jai, my head tilted to one side.

"Because these aren't going to work very well . . . let's just say that Austin has to get the hell out of there within a few minutes," Jai gave our driver and apprehensive look, "which is where things get complicated."

"Why wasn't I read in with all this stuff?" I asked impatiently, I hated being left out of the loop.

He shrugged, "You had a lot on your mind, and I figured we'd have plenty of time to fill you in but with the slight change in agenda . . . well now you know and that's what matters," he finished quickly.

"Right," Austin added, "as soon as the jeep stops, I'll be leading them bastards a few ways off and when you hear me say trouble, yall get out outta the trunk and get to the cars."

"How long did you guys have to put this together again?" I asked, bumping along with the jeep as we rolled over hills.

Jai shrugged, "A few minutes, we're playing this one by ear, basically."

He turned towards me, glaring at me, "But under no circumstances are you to go against my orders, Annie, no matter how unreasonable they may seem, you have to trust me. Can you do that?"

I looked at him, this was the "Prince" of sly and arrogance, but these past few days, I had began to see that he wasn't as bad as everyone made him out to be. Did I completely trust him? Well, not with most things, but with my life? Yes, I did.

"I'll get the job done, Jai," I agreed, "and I promise to let you play Alpha male," I added with a cheeky smile.

He laughed softly, "That does wonders for my male pride, Walker."

We drove in silence for a few more hours, both of us occasionally dozing off and being jolted awake by the jeep.

"Alright," Austin called, rapping his knuckled on the dashboard, jolting me awake, "we have about five minutes before we enter the camp's radar, I need the both of you to get the hell in the trunk."

I nodded and climbed over the back seat and looked down at the trunk; it was filled with sleek, black cases, probably filled with nukes and guns, I realized.

Silently, I climbed into the trunk on top of the cases, handing them one by one up to Jai, he laid them on our seats and I pulled aside the tarp that covered the bottom of the trunk to reveal a barely noticeable crack between the trunk and the seats.

"Hurry the hell up," Austin hissed, and he suddenly put the Jeep into an abrupt stop.

I quickly threw the latch open to reveal a small, tightly packed space that was the trunk.

"Oh hell," I muttered as I lowered myself in and pressed myself against the side, already feeling sweat beginning to form on my body. Jai climbed in next to me and he closed the latch behind him. I heard Austin packing the weapons back over us and saw that the latch had a few breathing holes poked through.

I felt the Jeep begin to move again and felt a blush slowly creep up my body. We were pressed so tightly together that I could smell the sweat that had formed on his body as well.

"What's the matter, Walker, not enjoying what any college girl would die to feel right now?" Jai joked, his voice hushed.

"Actually, I'm not," I joked, "you're sweaty."

He laughed softly, "Well that's what happens when men don't shower for a few days."

He turned away from me and pressed against the opposite wall, no doubt trying to give me more room. Unfortunately, the space that we were in was so small that even when pushing away from each other, our bare skin was still touching.

I felt sweat drip from my hair onto my chest and sighed, the breathing holes weren't doing much. The air in the trunk was compacted and made breathing even more difficult than the desert air.

Finally, after what seemed like three hours, the jeep came to a stop.

"Well, hey there Amigo, the nukes and the Ak-47s, just like I promised!" I heard Austin drawl out.

He was answered in rapid Farsi and to my surprise, he responded in their language fluently. I heard them come around back, their footsteps heavy as they opened the trunk.

I felt the air shift until it wasn't as dense as before and knew that the weapons were being unloaded.

"How do I know that these are the real thing?" One of them asked in heavily accented English.

"Well, come on over, here, and I'll show you how it's done," Austin replied, and I heard their foot steps retracting.

"Now?" I whispered to Jai, my pulse racing.

He shook his head, "no."

"See here, if you open it like this, and hold it with your fingers spread, it won't give you any trouble," with that said, I immediately cracked open the latch silently and peered up from underneath the trunk.

I could barely see the backs of the assassins and realized that we had to move fast. I quietly opened the door of the trunk, and climbed out, looking their way to see if I got a reaction.

Austin's eyes met mine and he glared, barely nudging his head away from the jeep. Jai jumped out next to me and tapped me on the shoulder, pointing to the trucks stored behind the cement building. It looked to be about a two hundred dash.

"Go," he breathed, and with that being said, I took off for the trucks, not daring to look back. I tried to keep my feet from making too much noise as I sprinted the fairly short distance. My heart was racing in my chest and I was surprised that the assassins hadn't turned around yet.

My eyes seemed to burn holes into the trucks from the shear intensity of my gaze. I prayed that we would make it, and dived the last few feet behind one of them.

Jai was right behind me.

"Damn, that was close," Jai whispered, and I nodded.

He motioned for me to get underneath the tarp of one of the trucks and I nodded, scrambling in, thankful for the fairly cool shelter it provided.

"Did they see you?" I whispered as I helped him up.

He hesitated, "I don't think so, but we should stay here for now just in case, wait until we hear Austin leave and they get back into their camp."

I nodded, and even in the almost pitch black of the truck, I could feel him staring at me.

"What are you staring at?"

I heard the rustle of his shirt as he shrugged.

"Nothing, just wondering when the shooting's about to start," he answered truthfully.

Suddenly, Austin's voice drifted closer by.

"What? No, I didn't so nobody come by here, it was just me! Who else could've-

Before he could finish his sentence, there was a gunshot and the unmistakable sound of a body dropping to the ground.


	9. Chapter 9

Annie POV

Almost immediately following the crash, I felt Jai roughly grab my arm and whisper in my ear.

"There's hooks on the bottom of the truck that they use for chains to keep the cargo in place, get under there, Walker, and stay there while I figure out how to get us out of here."

I opened my mouth in shock and clamped his hand over it.

"No time for questions, go!"

I glared at him but nodded; at least out there I could potentially cover him.

I swung myself over the side of the truck facing away from the assassins, thankful that there were rows of trucks behind me. I scuttled underneath the truck and saw what Jai meant; what he didn't say was how difficult this was going to be.

I swung first one foot up into the hook, hooking my ankle around it. I hastily pulled out my gun from it's holster and held it tightly in my left hand as I swung the other ankle into the hook. I winced at the contact; I would have a bruise later.

"Amir, go search the trucks!" One of them yelled, and I saw their feet moving towards us, making my heart stop for a second.

I pulled my arm up to the other hook and hung there for a second, my muscles screaming in pain. I raised the gun, taking careful aim and sending a shot into his ankle. I heard his horrible scream as he fell, clutching his ankle.

Suddenly, his feet were replaced with a face covered with a scarf, his eyes a muddy brown. He screamed something that I didn't catch as I sent the fatal bullet into his forehead. His companion, however, I didn't see.

I watched as the light left his eyes and was suddenly taken back four months when I had my first kill. I shuddered at the thought and shook myself out of my own head, switching and putting the handle of the gun in my mouth as I swung the rest of my body up. My muscles were now protesting the shear agony but I held on, hoping that Jai would be able to get us going.

_But where's the other one? _

There were at least three out there with Austin, and I had only gotten one. I strained my ears for the slightest sound but didn't hear any footsteps; had they ran off? Had I actually been lucky enough to have gotten their leader?

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a pair of boots showed up to my right, where the truck's front door was. Then another pair identical to it was suddenly next to him.

I heard the rustle as the tarp was pulled away and hopped to God that Jai had already hidden himself elsewhere.

I grimaced in pain, the gun muffling my wince as I tried to press myself up against the bottom of the truck as much as possible. I felt myself slipping but refused to give into the pain, pushing against the hooks with all the strength I had left, hoping, just hoping that Jai would have us going soon.

"Check the driver's seat," one of them mumbled.

There was a shuffling of footsteps and then, the car door was wrenched open.

"I found him!"

Shit, no, I thought, they couldn't have found him, Jai was smarter than this!

"Hello, men, I was just-

That was the last thing I heard from him, what I heard next was the unmistakable sound of the butt of a gun connecting against flesh. I heard them drag him out of the truck and their footsteps retreated.

I stayed pressed against the bottom of the truck, my breathing heavy and my legs and arms shaking from the exertion. But despite it all, I couldn't feel bad for myself; the tears I cried were for Jai. He had sacrificed himself so that I wouldn't be found out. I would not let his sacrifice go to waste.

Auggie POV (few hours later)

I walked around the clusters of people in the meal tent, Parker at my elbow, talking away of all that I had to be done. I didn't hear a word she said; all that was running through my head was Annie. Her smile, her laugh, her distinct perfume, the way she made me want to drop whatever I was doing and go find her.

I didn't sleep much, well, actually I didn't sleep period; my mind played scenarios of her in danger, but this time, I wasn't in her ear telling her how to get out and keep her safe. Who was her handler now? I wondered, did she even have one for this op?

I felt panic begin to set in again, and my heart lurched at the thought of her getting hurt; I had to find her, I realized, I couldn't just let her leave me again. No, I couldn't stay here anymore.

"Parker," I whispered quietly, cutting her off mid-sentence, "can we go back into our tent? I have something to talk to you about."

She paused and I felt her eyes looking into mine.

"Auggie, what's wrong?"

"It's just something that needs to be said privately, Parker," I dodged her question.

"Alright," she said reluctantly and I felt her lead me away from the crowds of people and back out into the morning, desert air. It was still extremely early in the day; but I couldn't sleep so I had suggested that we go and get breakfast early.

"Parker, we need your signature on some things!" I heard a male voice call out, Jared, probably, I guessed.

She sighed, "Can't it wait?"

"Not really, they're about to head out with the supplies but we need your signature and your ok on some paper work first. It's a long drive, so they'll need all the time they can get."

"It's alright," I encouraged, "we can always talk later."

She pressed a soft kiss to my lips and I felt her hand squeeze mine, "I'll find you later, alright? Go back to the tent, I'll meet you there."

That was exactly where I intended to go, in fact. I walked briskly into our tent, my hand up against the walls as I walked towards what I thought was my bed. I pulled my bag out from underneath my bed and felt around inside it until my hand closed around a hard, metal object.

I pulled it out and flipped it open, running my fingers over the keyboard of the small satellite phone.

I dialed Joan's number from memory and pressed it to my ear, waiting.

"Auggie, what can I do for you?"

"Joan, I need to know the status of Annie and Jai, I assume you have a handler feeding them the necessary information?"

There was a light pause.

"Auggie, you don't have clearance into their op, you aren't read in."

Did I detect the slightest hint of hesitation in her voice?

"Then read me in," I almost growled.

"It's not that simple. I told you I couldn't tell you our last phone call, why would you think that my mind has changed in the slightest?"

I didn't have a response to that. She was right, I probably didn't have a right to know; but my heart was aching for her and my mind was spinning in circles in enigmatic questions that I didn't have the answers to.

"Joan, please," I almost begged, "just tell me that they haven't missed any check ins yet. I just want to know that they're ok."

_I just want to know if Annie is still alive, out there, somewhere._

This pause was a lot more drawn out and when she answered, I definitely heard the hesitation.

"I can't do that, Auggie. I suggest you don't call me anymore unless it is to give me your resignation because I'm very busy right now. Good bye, Auggie."

The line went dead.

Joan POV

I sighed, getting up out of my chair and walking out of my office onto the catwalk, going down the stairs and into a Bill Nylon's office.

He looked like he hadn't slept in days; his eyes were bloodshot and he was almost screaming into his phone, looking extremely aggravated.

"Any luck?" I asked, sitting in one of the chairs.

He looked up, shocked, as if he hadn't heard me come in and shook his head.

"Dammit, I _need _a group out there now, John! A week from now won't cut it!" He slammed the phone down back into it's cradle, giving me his full attention.

"I'll assume they haven't checked in yet?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"No, god damn, the signal from the cell says that they're at the camp, but no one is answering! Jai hasn't called for three hours, Joan, they're off grid, basically."

"How soon can we get a team out to their last known location?" I asked, dreading the answer.

This was completely off book because technically speaking, the CIA wasn't suppose to be negotiating with terrorists. I had been working on this case for a while, going over their demands; $5 billion for our asset, and I couldn't get that money unless I pulled it from curious sources who would want to know what was going on.

So, I did the next best thing; I found myself a volunteer.

"Joan, we both know that we can't get a rescue team out there unless we find someone we trust; so far, the only one out there is Auggie and he is a liability. Plus, he may even be a target."

We were at a stalemate.

Annie POV

The acidic smell of the truck was making me dizzy as I slowly untangled myself from the bottom of the truck, my tears had long since dried up and my mind was spinning with possibilities. Jai wouldn't have left me in the dark like that, he would've given me something to work with.

I slowly shimmed out from underneath the truck, as soon as I was halfway out, I felt the sun instantly blind me and grimaced; my eyes had grown accustomed to the semi-darkness and the sun's rays were a blinding white.

I pulled the rest of my body free, my muscles making me feel as if I weighed three times my own weight. I glanced around, sitting up and pressing my back against the truck's passenger door. The cement building off to the side was surprisingly quiet, and I didn't see any lookouts in front, which was surprising.

I pulled myself up into a standing position, my legs shaking slightly. My calves still screamed from the exertion I had put on them a few hours ago, and sliding up into the passenger seat wasn't a great help.

I looked around, finding discarded wrappers from chocolate bars and food wrappers when suddenly, I heard the dull sound of a phone vibrating against metal.

Of course, I thought, he left his phone for me!

I scrambled towards the sound, and found the phone hidden between the two seats. I shoved my hand in between them and pulled it out, quickly answering it.

"Hello?" I whispered, my voice hoarse from lack of water.

"Thank god! Annie, right? Where the hell is Jai!"

I assumed it was Bill, he sounded as if God had just given him the greatest gift in the world.

"Yeah, they got him, Bill, where's the helicopter he had you call in earlier?" This was a last ditch move for a spy, running into a blind hostage situation outnumbered and with guns blazing, hoping for the best.

"The helicopter is on his way, he won't make it for a while; the pilot was held up with some last minute testing. I can give you a decent floor print of the camp, though."

I sighed, "I'm looking right at the damn thing. It doesn't look very big, to be honest. It's like a cement box, pretty small."

"No, the cement building is a decoy; they're underground. Jai was smart enough to activate his GPS chip I had installed in his watch."

I nodded, "OK, so how the hell do I get him out?"

He sighed, "You play the waiting game, Annie, which is never a fun one, but I can't give you anymore information. As soon as the helicopter gets here, I'll give you a call. But under no circumstances are you to leave without our asset, do you understand? This is under Joan's orders."

I nodded and quickly hung up. I climbed out of the truck and into the bright sunlight, thankful that the sand covered the sound of my footsteps, I made my way towards the cement building, peeking in the windows, I saw that the room was deserted.

Suddenly, I saw a door begin to open from underneath a rug and quickly ducked, my breath catching in my throat.

"Who is this man?"

"I do not know, he will not give up his reasons for being here."

"The shifts, they must be changed. Should we get rid of this location after sunset when we attack the real target or place extra shifts on the captures?"

There was a pause and I cautiously peeked in, both men had their back to me and I saw a pair of keys dangling from his belt.

"I would just get rid of this location. If the United States government want their asset back so badly, than they will eventually find him. As for the other one, he is collateral damage; he will be blown with the asset as well. They are of no use to them, we will not receive any more leverage or money with him."

"Alright, why don't you go down and inform Amil, I'll take first shift."

I watched as the dark haired man with the keys turned towards the entrance and instantly ducked down again. His companion slinked back underneath the door and it shut with a sense of finality.

I looked at my watch; it was about 12:09pm, I had about five to six more hours to get us the hell out of there.

I looked around, looking for what I could use and found Austin's body had been dragged behind the building and his jeep had been moved there as well. I took one last look at the guard, satisfied that he wouldn't notice from his bored expression, slinked towards the back of the building.

I felt sweat drip down my neck from my hair and smoothed the loose strands from my face; I felt a flush sweep over me from the sheer heat and my eyes narrowed; my exposed arms had already turned pink.

I climbed into the jeep as quietly as I could and was thankful when I found a backpack filled with three bottles of water, a first aid kit, a few granola bars, and a SIG Sauer. I smiled in relief and cracked open a bottle, taking a cautious sip.

I looked towards the building again, a plan forming in my head.

I would have to wait until when it was close to sundown, when they had all exited the camp. I would have to work quickly to get them both out but I didn't have a doubt that I could do it; no, I _had _to do it.

"Hang on, Jai," I whispered, and tucked the SIG into my pocket.

Now, I thought, the waiting game begins.


	10. Chapter 10

Annie POV

I watched as the sun slowly sank lower and lower, closer and closer to the horizon. The back of my neck felt like it had been baked in the oven at 325 degrees. I huddled behind the truck closest to the entrance, ready for when they decided to come out.

As if on cue, my phone began vibrating.

I sighed, "Bill? What's up?"

"Annie, change of plans. This is Joan, I'm fully reading you in. This group is keeping our asset for five billion dollars, and we received word that they have another target as well. The plan is you let the first group go, towards-

"Who is the second target?"

In the pit of my stomach, I knew who she was talking about but better to be safe than sorry.

"Auggie."

I nodded, my teeth clenching.

"I heard that they were going to kill our asset first, before they left and they're going to blow Jai up along with him," I told her, my eyes still glued to the door, waiting for the slightest movement.

There was a pause, then Bill came online.

"Annie, what have you found out?"

"I overheard their conversation and they said that they're going after Auggie and Jai and Abdul would be basically blown to hell after the second team left."

"Annie," there was a rustle and Joan's voice came on, "I'm not going to play games with you or sugarcoat it. You _have _to get Jai and Abdul out before then and eliminate the first team. Once you do that, and I know that you will be able to, Bill is coming up with your cover right now, go after the first team to Auggie and tell them that you're the negotiator. You'll give them their five billion the day after you arrive but first you have to check to see that no one in the camp was harmed. Do you read me?"

"Yes, loud and clear. I'll get them all back, Joan."

"Come back with them, Annie."

We both hung up, and I took a deep breath; there wasn't any room for error, I realized.

_You have to get through this for Auggie. He deserves to live his life, even if he's going to be happy with someone else._

The subtle creak of the door and the rustle of the rug being moved caught my eye and jolted me from my thoughts. I watched as the door slowly creaked open and slinked over to the window, pressing myself against the hot cement underneath it.

"Let us go, my brothers, the second team, stay here until the preparations are made and then follow us. We will give the United States a few more days before we kill him. But Abdul and the other man are of no use to us."

I turned and watched as they came out of the building and the door shut behind them. I slinked behind the building and peered around the corner and watched as they boarded the truck that I had hidden in.

I waited until the truck was a few miles away from the building before sprinting to the window and swinging myself inside. I took a deep breath and pulled the rug aside, lifting the door slightly, I threw in one of the flash bangs that were in Austin's backpack, my heart pounding so hard it threatened to burst.

I heard the screams in Farsi and quickly jumped in, disregarding the ladder and braced myself for the landing, my feet hitting the hard cement and my ankle giving away just for a second.

My hands gripped the two guns tightly as I ran ahead, squinting against the smoke that was already fading. I saw a body to my left coming towards me, and promptly slammed the butt of my Lady Colt against the side of his head and watched as he went down.

"Jai!" I screamed, feeling my panic rise. The negative of a flashbang was that your enemy was blinded but so were you.

There was no point in keeping a cover status anymore; this wasn't a basic protocol mission, hell, there _was_ no protocol for this. Plus, the flashbang kind of gave me away.

I waited for an answer and felt a pair of arms wrap tightly around my waist, locking my arms against me as well. My captor screamed in rage as he held me tight, almost crushing me. I kicked out with my legs, catching him in the knee repeatedly. His grip loosened and I managed to get one arm free and elbowed him in the face. I heard the crunch of his nose as my elbow made contact with it and broke free.

I quickly turned and pointed both guns at his chest, without another moment of hesitation, I pulled both of the triggers. Even from the smoke, I could see the blood spatter across his shirt and the hot, burning droplets decorated my face like acid. The sharp recoil, the acidic smell, the thud as the body fell, it all rushed towards me and smothered me with-

"Annie!"

Jai's cry broke through the fog of pain and sickening memories, and immediately, I spun into action, sprinting towards his voice. I had probably lost a few minutes already, I couldn't waste anymore time.

I saw shadows coming out of the smoke and saw a face, full of rage as he flung himself at me, tackling me to the ground, knocking my Lady Colt aside. I tasted blood as his fist connected with my cheek, making my face crack to one side.

I pulled my leg up to my chest and placed a well aimed kick to his face, doing a backwards summersault and landing on my feet just in time to dodge another punch.

_You have to eliminate the first team._

I pulled my gun up and took aim, letting my finger put the slightest weight on the trigger and moved out of the way as he fell.

"Keep talking, Jai," I yelled, the smoke was already clearing but there were several corridors branching out.

"You alright?" He cried, his voice cracking and hoarse.

I made a quickly sprinted and made a right, running towards the one door at the end of the corridor. I grabbed the handle and to my frustration it was locked. I took a few steps back, my breathing heavy as I fired twice at the lock, finally kicking in the door afterwards.

Immediately, I was met with a surprising sight. Jai was tied up to a chair and behind him was Abdul. I ran to him and began to untie his legs.

"Hang on, Jai, you're getting out of here soon," I whispered, watching as his head lolled forward.

"I'm fine, Walker, what about you?" His voice was softer than usual and as I worked on his hands, he grimaced slightly, "Did you get my message?"

I nodded, "Yeah, found the phone. It lead me to you, thank God you left it there."

I turned towards our asset to find his face badly beaten.

"Hello, my name is Annie, I'm here to get you out and safe," I told him in Farsi.

He nodded, "Thank you, for coming here."

I untied him as well and to my surprise, despite the pain he was in, he smiled and nodded his thanks once again.

Suddenly, the subtle sound of ticking greeted my ears and jumped.

"Shit," I whispered, "the bomb."

"Yeah, it's in the corner of the room," Jai whispered, getting to his feet. We shifted Abdul in between us and ran from the room, closing the door shut behind us.

We didn't need to communicate to know that we had to get out soon. I felt sweat dripping into my eyes from my hair and quickly bruised it away. The latter came into view and I gestured towards Jai.

"You bring him up first," I told him, giving him his phone back, "call Bill and tell him that we have Abdul."

He nodded and swung Abdul over his shoulder beginning the climb up. I followed immediately after him and slammed the door shut, running out of the building as quickly as I could.

I saw Jai a little ways ahead getting into a truck.

"I don't have keys!" I told him, climbing into the trunk anyways.

"I took the keys off of one of the guards," he ground out, and I felt the truck roar to life. I grabbed onto the sides of the trunk as he sped away from the building just as there was a deafening noise.

I turned to see the building burst completely, pieces of hot cement bouncing off of the truck's metal frame. The noise left my ears ringing and I could only hope that our truck would still keep going.

I climbed towards the window that separated me from the front seat. I pulled the window open.

"-I got him, Bill, I need you to get a direct fix on our spot right now and pick him up. I don't care how hard it seems."

Our eyes met in the rear view mirror and he gave me a nod, a small smile on his bruised face. I nodded back, job well done.

I handed him a bottle of water and he gaped at me for a second before taking several sips. I looked at Abdul to see that his head bobbed along with the truck and caught Jai's eye, shaking my head.

Jai slammed on the brakes, making me lurch forward a little.

"Yeah, Billy, right here, thanks," he hung up and looked at Abdul, "listen, we have people coming to get you very soon, alright? But you have to stay in this very spot. Don't move, or they won't be able to find you."

I handed Abdul a bottle of water and one of the granola bars as he nodded and got out of the car.

I traded places with him and to my surprise, he grasped my hand in his.

"Thank you, kind stranger," he choked out, giving me a toothless smile.

I smiled back, "Stay safe, Abdul."

With that said, we sped away from him.

"Jai, you alright?" I asked, watching as his eyes unfocused slightly.

He nodded, "I'm fine."

"What did they do to you in there?"

"Nothing I couldn't handle. Annie, what's the plan here?"

"We go to the Peace Corps Auggie is in; he's their real target now. I'm posing as the negotiator, saying that they're going to get their money a day later after I check on the hostages."

"Seems alright, but a few flaws; where the hell do I come in and how the hell do we get them out?"

I looked at my bag and took out a grenade, "I was thinking we could improvise how about you hide in the trunk and while I'm speaking to them you get out and when I give you the signal, at night, throw this into the meal tent."

"That should give us enough time to get everyone out," Jai pondered, thinking aloud, "but the trunk . . . that was an issue before, wasn't it? Austin's plan didn't exactly work."

I nodded, "But who could resist a blonde?" I joked, making him crack a smile.

"Annie," he said after a few minutes, "I don't want you throwing something new into this, ok? I want us all to get out safely and I want you to listen to me this time, alright?"

I nodded, "As long as you promise me that you'll be coming out with me."

He looked at me and gave me a smile, "I got your back, Walker."


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry for doing a repost last time my bad! Hope you like this one . . . leave a review please!**

Auggie POV

I sighed for what seemed like the millionth time today; and it was only about 4:30. I turned my thoughts around again, analyzing my situation from every angle.

_It's not fair to her, she deserves to have a man that fully loves her, not a man that will forever have a piece of his heart entrapped within another woman._

I played over the last four months in my head, Parker's sweet laugh, her distinct perfume, the way her fingers drifted over me when we made love. It was all very enjoyable, natural, and comforting, almost, but absolutely nothing to what I had with Annie.

The way her arm would curl protectively around my elbow at times, her grape fruit scent sometimes surrounding me when we were at Allen's, the way she laughed was like music to my ears. With Parker, I could simply be happy, but with Annie, I would be ecstatic; every day with her would be like heaven on Earth.

I would give my life for both women, I realized, but Parker didn't understand what my life before Eritrea was like. She didn't understand the sense of danger and unease that always flooded my mind every time Annie was put on a plane to some different country, or doing a brush pass. She didn't understand the level of adrenaline and what was at stake like I did.

When laying it all out there, it seemed obvious what I had to do. But god damn, I just _couldn't _do it! Annie wouldn't accept me; we were too comfortable as friends, hell, she probably thought of me as her older brother!

_But Parker deserves to have the chance to meet someone who will love her fully._

I sighed again, and we were back to this conclusion, I thought, and swallowed against the lump in my throat.

My head lifted when I heard the subtle sound of the tent flap opening and cocked my head to one side.

"Hey Auggie, Henry told me you would be here. I can't thank you enough for speaking to a few of the blind women we admitted here earlier," she sat down beside me on our mattress and I felt her arms encircle my waist.

Her head lay against my shoulder and I was hit with that sweet scent of roses.

"My pleasure," I began, biting my lip slightly, a habit I picked up from a certain blonde woman, "Parker we need to talk."

She pulled us down and my head was cushioned by my pillow, and I felt her small form curl up beside me.

"Hm?"

"God, Parker, you're so amazing, you're so incredible," I sniffed slightly; was that the smell of gas? "These past few months have been so great, but . . . "

I stopped myself, tilting my head to one side and using my elbows to prop me up.

The muffled shouts in Farsi assaulted my ears; there were very few workers here that spoke the native tongue so well.

"Auggie?" I heard the shifting of the sheets as she sat up, "What's wrong?"

I held up a hand as I tried to desperately unscrambled what they were saying.

Suddenly, the startled scream of one of the workers, Anna, I think, was her name, made me spring to my feet.

The sound of the tent being roughly ripped open made me turn towards the noise. I pulled Parker behind me just as I felt a pair of arms grab me.

"Stop! Who are you guys? What do you want?" I heard Parker shout in alarm.

I was roughly shoved back onto the mattress; I tried to scramble away while keeping my ears on high alert, trying to place where everybody was but couldn't. The smell of chlorophyll filled up my senses and made my nose burn.

The world seemed to mute itself as I struggled against the arms that held me down.

Annie POV

I looked at my watch, it was almost five now; the jeep had needed a tired change and I hadn't wanted Jai to exert himself even more so I took on the job; only problem was that I had never changed a tire by myself in my life.

I examined my handy work with a smile, hoping that it would work.

"Jai, I think I got it," I whispered, looking up to see that he looked extremely exhausted.

"Maybe I should drive," I ventured when he didn't respond.

He shook his head and began dialing Bill's number.

"Billy, we're going to need the choppers in about four hours," he looked at me for confirmation and when I nodded, he continued, "we're getting them all out, no matter what."

He paused as I swung myself back into the Jeep, handing him the bottle of water he had probably forgotten about.

He nodded his thanks as he continued to listen to what was being spoken on the other line.

Suddenly, he passed the phone to me, mouthing "Joan."

I took the phone, "Hello?"

"Annie, what is your status?"

"About two hours tops from getting to the camp."

"Alright, Bill has you set up as Ms. Anna Brooks, you're with the ZAP magazine, and a liason with our government doing a story on their political cause, and I use the term loosely, while giving them the money as well."

I nodded, "Sounds like a plan, but what am I going to do if someone accidentally lets slip that I'm not who I say I am?"

My mind shifted to Shariff, he would have a lot to say now that his brother and his team were in place.

"Play it off, challenge them to search your name and they should be able to find a whole list of your accomplishments and accommodations. I think Austin had two blue-tooths with him, I want both of you to put them on so that we can be in full contact at all times, understand? Get going, Annie. The choppers are being sent your way."

"Thanks Joan, I really appreciate it."

The jeep roared to life and we continued to speed through the desert, an uneasy silence hanging over us. We were each withdrawing into ourselves, I realized, mentally preparing ourselves for the tasks at hand.

I reached into the backpack and sure enough, the two black blue-tooths were there. I handed one to Jai and put mine on, securing it into place.

"Can you hear me?" Bill called, in my ear.

"Loud and clear," I answered.

"Great, now I'm going to mute myself until one of you need help or need to stay in contact with us."

"Annie at around nine pm I'm going to blow it up, so get them all ready," Jai said, breaking his silence.

"Alright," I said quietly.

Auggie POV

The murmur of voices reached my ears, I tried to straighten out what they were saying to no avail, but couldn't get a clear reading from the ringing that was in my head.

"Auggie, are you awake?" Parker called, sounding far away.

I shook my head slightly, my thumb running over my sightless eyes, wishing that I could see.

I opened my eyes, knowing that my wishes weren't going to be answered by doing it for her benefit, not mine.

"What happened?"

"A few guys came into camp, they said that they're taking us hostage until they get their money. I don't know what they're talking about now, but they're negotiating with some other people. We've all been crowded into one of the tents, I'm not sure which because I was blind folded."

I nodded, feeling around, my hand coming into contact with her bare arm.

"Auggie, get some rest, alright? I'll wake you if anything else happens."

"Parker, about earlier, I-

She put her hand over my mouth, mumbling the rest of my speech.

"I know," she whispered in my ear, and I had a feeling that she really did.

Parker POV

I walked out of the tent as soon as Auggie had fallen asleep. I did know what he meant; hell, I had known as soon as he had realized that Annie had arrived at camp. It was inevitable, I thought.

I peeked through the flap and my eyes widened in shock.

"Annie?" I whispered quietly, as I listened in on their conversation. Mercifully, it was in English.

"You'll get your money tomorrow, just let me make sure that you haven't harmed anybody. If any of them are dead, you won't be getting any of the money."

She looked confident, her eyes narrowed as she stood just a few centimeters away from the burly man that held the gun.

"How do I know that this is not a scam?"

"Check my credentials," with that said, she briskly walked towards our tent. I scrambled back away from the door way, still in slight shock.

How did she get here? More importantly, how did she know that we were in danger and how would she get us out?"

Annie POV

I briskly turned away from him with my head held high, walking towards the tent. I held my breath, hoping that he wouldn't see through my cool demeanor and realized that I was actually burning with anxiety at the moment.

I brushed through the guards and stepped inside the tent, scanning the darkened area for familiar faces.

_Auggie._

"Annie! What are you doing here?"

I turned and saw Parker's face come into view and the breath I had previously held escaped.

"Are any of you hurt?" I asked, looking around, seeing scared faces but not one of them had the features of the man that I was looking for.

"Auggie has been drifting in and out of consciousness, I think they did something to him but I couldn't see. He's over here," she whispered, gesturing for the crowd of people to part and make a path for us.

I walked towards the corner of the tent and saw Auggie lying on the single mattress in the corner of the room, sweat rolling down his face.

I laid my hand on his shoulder, "Auggie," I whispered quietly, gently shaking his shoulder.

I heard him mumble something in his sleep but didn't catch it. I leaned over and whispered his name again, closer to his ear.

"Auggie, I need you to wake up."

I pulled back slightly to look into his face, my fingers itching to trace every line that had formed on his face, heal every cut that wasn't there when I had first met him, but refrained and waited patiently for his eyes to open.

"Annie," he whispered, and his eyes sprung open, darting back and forth.

"Auggie, I'm here, now tell me what hurts," I whispered, my eyes filling with tears as I gazed into his deep brown ones.

"I'm fine, my head's just a little banged up from the fall, otherwise I'm ready to take on a whole army," he joked, his voice rough.

"Where are you, Annie?" He asked, trying to find me.

I smiled, took his hand and laid it on my shoulder, "I'm right here, Auggie, just like how I've always been."

I turned to the rest of the awe struck on-lookers and gave them a confident smile.

"You're all going to be fine, arrangements are being made as we speak to get you all back home."

They nodded and some went back to their separate corners, whispering in secluded groups and every once in a while looking at us with suspicion.

"When are we getting out?" Parker asked.

I turned to look at her and kept my voice down, "Tonight. Jai is rigging everything so that we'll have a distraction when the time comes. I need you to prepare everyone discreetly while I go and talk to the guards outside."

"Annie, don't leave," Auggie whispered, catching hold of my hand.

I smiled, "I'll be back, don't worry."

"Don't make a promise you can't keep," was his reply.


	12. Chapter 12

Jai POV

I strained my ears for Annie's voice giving me the signal to get the hell out of this jeep. I felt sweat steadily dripping down my face and didn't dare move from my pretzel position in the back of the car.

"Did my credentials check out?" I heard Annie whisper from my earpiece.

_Come on, say it, Annie, I can't stay like this forever. We're running on a tight enough schedule as is!_

"Yes, they did."

I froze; his voice was so familiar, he was the one that did the interrogating with myself and Abdul just hours ago. Shit.

"I told you they would, maybe next time you'll believe me considering that no one else would want to sneak into this place. I'm just shocked you hadn't painted the place red with everyone's blood."

And there it was, I thought, blood.

I threw the cover back and sat up quickly, taking a quick look around, I saw that they had their backs towards me and were watching Annie intently as she conversed with them. I turned again and saw that there were two men guarding the hostages tent, just like Annie had said.

I could see the supplies tent just a few yards away, and quietly jumped out of the open window, landing on my feet, I did one last sweep around to make sure that no one was watching.

Two guards with the hostages, three in front of the supplies tent, and five speaking with Annie; ten guards in total. This wasn't going to be as easy as I had originally thought.

I sprinted away from the Jeep that was thankfully parked in the shadows of another tent, swinging behind the hostages tent and slowing to catch my breath; something wasn't right.

I looked around again; there weren't any guards behind the tents, so basically anyone could've escaped; so why hadn't they?

I listened in on Annie's conversation again, trying to catch a clue in her speech.

"Walker why aren't there any guards behind the tents?" I asked quietly.

"-which is why we can't get the money to you tonight. Enough of your questions, can I ask one of my own?"

"You may, but you may not get an answer," one of the growled.

"Alright, " she paused and I could practically see her sizing them up, "where are the guards behind the tents? Maybe you guys should put some of them there, to make the hostages escape a little more difficult."

There was another pause and I felt my blood run cold; had they found her out?

Then, I heard a rumbling laugh, making my frown deepen.

"We have a few pressure sensors hidden behind the tents, if one happens to go off, we will know about it."

I looked down, my eyes wide. Oh shit.

"Bill! Hey, wake up, man!"

I heard a crackle of static and then the rustle of papers.

"Jai, what happened?"

"I need you to get me a quick sweep of the camp, do you still have that heli on hold for me?"

"Yeah, I do. What's the problem?"

"They have pressure plates here, and obviously the sand has obscured them all so I don't know where to step without getting blown to little itsy bitsy Jai pieces," I felt my frustration mounting; we needed more time.

There was another pause and I impatiently shifted my weight from foot to foot, we were losing time.

"He should be right on top of you guys now," Bill whispered, making me look up, I heard the faint, humming sound of the helicopter.

Sure enough, one had appeared over head, doing a quick scan below.

"Give it a few minutes," he whispered, I took the time to slip my hand into the backpack and pull out the two grenades, slightly hesitant.

"Alright, I got your location and the map of the camp. Damn! They must have plenty of man power because I can see at least three ahead of you. I want you to take three steps southwest, and then keep walking from there until I tell you to stop."

I sighed, doing as he told, my eyes narrowed as I cautiously continued on, my progress slower than I had expected. The supply tent seemed so far away now.

"Stop!"

I almost jumped from the screech that was Bill's voice in my ear.

"Now, I want you to take about five steps north and then keep on going."

This was going to be a long night.

Annie POV

I walked back into the tent with a first aid kit, my eyes narrowed in concentration. I listened to Jai and Billy's conversation with fear slowly filling me up. One misstep, and this could all be over, for everyone.

"Annie, what's wrong?" Parker asked, coming towards me as soon as I came into view.

"This'll take a little longer than expected," I explained, handing her the first aid kit, "why don't you try and fix everyone up."

She nodded and walked around, speaking quietly to the others and preparing them for what was sure to happen in just a few hours; total chaos.

"Annie."

That voice was so soft and raspy that I barely recognized it, but nonetheless, I did. How could I forget it? I had tried for four months with no success.

"Auggie, what is it?"

He motioned for me to come closer and I did, sitting beside him, my muscles tensing with adrenaline.

"I'm sorry."

Two words, two very simple words, and yet coming from him, it seemed to mean the world. I turned my face slightly to look at him; his eyes, though unseeing, were filled with so many mixed emotions. He wasn't just apologizing for what was to come, but what he had already done' almost irreparable damage. Almost.

"No sense worrying about it now. We're getting the hell out of here soon, so better to keep a clear head. Do you need anything?" I tried to make my voice neutral, and almost succeeded.

"I'm fine, just a headache," he sat up, propping himself up on his elbows, "I think I owe you an explanation.

"I left because a lot was going on, a lot I just couldn't handle. On one hand I had Parker, a relationship I didn't know that I could have after what happened . . . on the other I had gotten news I had been dreading but expected. My doctor told me that I wasn't eligible for the stem cell treatments. Yeah, I already knew that there was only a slim chance I could be qualified, but it still hurt. Then, right in the middle, I had . . . you."

"So I was just one of those problems you had to escape? Without even telling me where you were going?" I asked, my anger rising slightly.

He looked alarmed, "No! God, no, Annie you're not a problem. I was just so overwhelmed that I needed time to myself. It wasn't fair for me to do what I did to you and leave you there but I had to, for me."

I swallowed against the lump in my throat and thought it over; chewing on my bottom lip.

"Are you truly happy here, Auggie? With Parker?" I asked, uncertain.

He hesitated, but before he could answer, I heard a crackle of static and quickly whispered for everyone to quiet.

"Annie! I got there, get them ready! We're blowing this hell hole," Jai growled.

I nodded, and relayed what he had said to everyone as quietly as possible.

"I want you all behind me, I'll go first, get rid of the guards. Those who are injured get with a partner and that person will leady you out."

"We're good here, Jai."

There was a slight pause and I felt my muscles tensing as I shoved my way to the front, gun drawn. My heart was pounding so hard that I thought it was going to burst any second.

"5 . . . 4 . . . 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . "

Then, the loudest explosion I had ever heard rocked the camp; the ground shook and she sand beneath our feet seemed to be vibrating. I heard startled shouts from both the assassins and prisoners alike.

As I had predicted earlier, chaos swirled around me and suddenly, everyone was pushing towards the entrance, ignoring my previous instructions.

Now or never, I thought, and launched myself out of the tent, grabbing the nearest guard and slamming him into his partner, while they were caught by surprise, I put a bullet in each of their heads, being thrown off a little as the recoil hit me. You thought I'd get used to it, I thought.

"Jai!" I yelled over the sound of bullets flying now, making sure that everyone got out of the tent.

"Where are the helicopters?"

He ran towards me, turning to fire two rounds behind him, "I'll lead them there, there's three we'll divide them up. You cover the rear, got me, Walker?"

I nodded and waited for everyone to exit out of the tent, adrenaline flowing through my veins.

I flinched as a bullet scrapped just by my ear and saw guards flooding out from neighboring tents, the realization of what was going on flashing across their faces as they fired. I ducked, pushing everyone forward

"Jai, I'll get the three back here, just get them to the helicopters!" I yelled, seeing him hesitate in his running.

"Take care of yourself, Walker," he yelled over the chaos.

I nodded and dropped to one knee behind a pile of crates, making myself a smaller target, I scouted the area. There were two to my right, firing blindly and the other one joggin up ahead, towards the group.

Quickly weighing my options, I took aim at the one furthest away from me and fired three shots, watching as he fell, I turned back to the two shooters that were quickly gaining on the group and fired at one of them, catching him in the back of the neck, he fell.

"Take the woman out! She is behind the crates!"

My aim faltered as a fresh group came towards me, charging blindly. I quickly sprinted away from them, shooting the one up ahead. The ones behind me began firing, the sound of bullets whizzing through the air making my ears hurt.

Auggie POV

I felt my steps falter on the unfamiliar terrain.

"Walker! What's your status?" I heard Jai call from up front, and felt myself slow down slightly.

Parker tugged at my arm, urging me forward.

"Jai, where's Annie?" I called up front, hoping he would hear me.

"She was suppose to catch up with us," Jai called back, "Don't worry, Annie can take care of herself. She's a good shot."

I nodded, still hesitant as I pumped my legs harder, thankful that I had still kept up my spec ops workouts. After a few minutes, the sound of bullets firing became more and more distant, until it was just a steady hum. We were going to make it.

Instead of the sound of bullets, the roar of helicopter blades whipping the air filled my ears. Sand began to swirl around me as we drew closer.

"Damn it, Walker get up here!" Jai called again, I heard the hint of desperation tint his voice.

Annie POV

I looked up ahead as I ran, the blood pounding in my ears as I ran harder. They were gaining on me but I knew that I had at least the joy of injuring several of them.

I turned and fired two blind shots behind me, hoping that I would hit my mark. Desperation began to cloud my vision, thoughts of _What if I don't make it? _Filled my head and my steps faltered.

The helicopters were many yards away, just three glinting mechanical blades up ahead. The bullets from the machine guns were flying by me, making the night sky occasionally sparkle as if fireworks were being shot up.

"Damn it, Walker, get up here!" Jai's voice screamed in my ear, I heard the desperation and felt bad for the pain that I was causing him. I wasn't going to make it, that much was for certain.

I watched helplessly as the first helicopter took off, and pumped my legs even harder still. Ten yards to go.

Suddenly, I felt a bullet tear through my side, and cried out in pain, but refused to let myself slow. I had to make it, I had to get there, if not for myself, then to save Auggie the pain of missing someone, the pain he had left me with.

I heard triumphant yells behind me and the machine gun blasts began anew.

I felt a bullet whiz just by my ear, so fast and so hot that it singed pieces of my hair.

Five yards now.

Jai POV

"Annie!" I screamed, my head sticking out of the helicopter's door, my arm outstretched.

She was so close, every cell in my body was screaming at me to jump off and just grab her, but I couldn't.

Suddenly, the helicopter shook, making me jerk backwards.

"Sir, we've spotted a sniper," the copilot said, grabbing a sniper he had hidden and taking careful aim from the open door, pushing me out of the way.

"Jai what's happening?" I heard Auggie yell over the sound of gun fire.

Before I could even open my mouth, I saw it; I saw one of the snipers take aim from not too far away and I saw the bullet rip from the barrel and towards Annie.

"NO!" I screamed, but it was too late. The bullet tore into her and she gave an ear piercing scream.


	13. Chapter 13

Annie POV

I gasped, making myself stumble slightly. The pain was excruciating, cutting into my core and slicing me to bits.

"Annie!"

His voice called through the haze and made me look up, I was so close, two feet away. I sprinted towards them, letting out a cry of both rage and complete agony as I grabbed the outstretched hand and pulled myself up, the once simple task now making me tremble and twitch in pain.

I landed on the cold helicopter floor, my heart pounding so hard that I could hear the echo of it in my ears.

"Stay with me, Walker, don't you dare fall asleep on me," Jai growled in my ear.

I nodded, struggling to breath. Suddenly, everything was slowing down, I tasted blood in the back of my throat and turned my face to cough it up, the red flecks dotting the otherwise almost pristine floor.

"God Annie, why did you have to," I turned again, that was Auggie, even now, when the world was growing fuzzy and fading in and out, he was still vibrant.

He felt around and took my hand in his, climbing over the medical kits Jai had set up and coming to rest beside me.

"Auggie," I whispered, my voice raspy.

"You can't do this, Annie, don't do this to me," he begged, and for once, he sounded genuinely scared, not only for my life . . . I looked into his eyes . . . but for his as well.

And then I knew. Just like that. If I died, then he wouldn't be alive much longer. I had to hold on for both of us.

I felt hands on me and looked down to see Jai stripping me of my shirt and putting pressure on my wounds. Pain clouded my features again and I saw red, there was a good chunk missing from my stomach.

I whimpered and tried not to choke.

Everything was dimming now, voices flashed through, but otherwise, all was silent.

"Annie! What the hell is happened?"

Joan? Was that Joan?

"No, Walker, come on stay with me! _Damn it, can't you fly any fucking faster_?"

Jai. God, everyone thought he was such an ass hole, and he could be, but right now, with me, he seemed like a big brother.

"Annie, don't do this to me, come on, fight it, Annie!"

Auggie. I wish I had more time to tell you what I had been thinking four months ago. Four long months ago . . . I should've said something . . . I should've stopped you from leaving . . . I should've . . .

Auggie POV

I pushed Jai's hands aside and began to administer CPR, my hands pounding her chest, my breathing ragged and wild.

"No, no, Annie," I whispered over and over again, I felt as if a piece of me was being ripped away, as her breathing got shallower and shallower.

Annie, don't you dare leave me, there's so much I need to tell you! You can't leave.

"Annie!" I cried out, in agony.

What am I going to tell Joan when we get back? What am I going to do every freaking Friday night?

I kept pumping her, my hand sliding up her neck to brush along her lips. I pressed my lips against hers, blowing in a lung full of air, desperate.

Who's going to walk me to my office, surrounding me in that sweet grapefruit bliss? Who's going to give me my caffeine fix every day? Who's going to tell me the office gossip? Who's going to make my heart flutter and make me feel the way you do?

1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . . I counted in my head and my hands crashed down on her chest and my lips blew in another lungful of air.

"Auggie," Jai said quietly, but I ignored him, feeling wetness on my cheeks. I hadn't realized that I was crying.

"Pull through, Annie, I know you're strong enough," I growled, giving her another breath of air.

"Auggie," Jai said, a little bit louder now.

His words had no effect on me.

Who's coming to Allen's with me? Who's going to be the one I trust? Who's going to be my best friend?

I heard the blades slow and felt us descending.

I checked for a pulse, and found none.

"Damn it Annie, I need you!" I cried, furious at myself for not being able to keep her safe and furious that I couldn't see her.

"Don't leave me, Annie. _Stay with me! _Damn it, _**I need you!"**_

__I felt hands pulling me away and medical personnel shouting all around me. I lay on my back, tears streaming down my cheeks in miniature rivers as I cried. My hands shot out frantically in search of her, but all I found was the cold metal of the helicopter.

"Auggie, let's go," Jai's voice again, his hand pulling me.

I didn't say a word; I couldn't. I let him lead me out of the helicopter and by the sound of the whooshing doors; I guessed that we were in a hospital.

"Annie," I whispered her name over and over again, like a mantra under my breath.

I collapsed on the bed that Jai lead me to, my mind playing over what I imagined she looked like. Long blond hair, bright, shimmering brown eyes, and a smile sweeter and brighter than the sun.

I suddenly began to shake violently, the cold of the night cutting into me as I was being pushed away, probably to some stupid examining room.

"Wait!" I called out to no one in particular, and to my surprise, the movement stopped.

"Where's Annie?"

"Sir, Ms. Walker was just brought into surgery. We need to take you to -

"No, take me to her, please."

"We can't, no one is allowed into surgery except for the doctors and the nurses. Please sit back sit, we have to get you examined."

"Will you tell me her condition later?" I asked, my voice sounded hollow.

The only answer I got was the sound and motion of being pushed into a hospital room.

Jai POV

I stared blankly down at the neatly tiled floor, studying the various shades of grey speckled within the almost flawless marble white. I counted the grey streaks, once, twice, again. I had to keep my mind off of what happened; how else would I be able to answer Joan's conference call?

Unfortunately, my vision danced with shades of red every now and then, and the harsh sound of helicopter blades and engine roaring to life made me forget that I was in the safety of a hospital. The screams, the blood . . . her blood . . . covering my hands.

I looked down at my hands and wasn't surprised to find that the blood was still caked on them, peeling in spots but otherwise staying firmly attached to my skin.

Suddenly, the phone that was on the seat next to me rang, I pegged it with a hard look, and then decided to answer it; had to face the music sometime.

"Hello."

My voice was flat, and it took almost all of my will power not to let on how much I was cracking.

"You were the senior operative on this. You were responsible for bringing yourself, Annie, and everyone else back to DC and Langley without a hiccup. That's all I asked you to do, Jai Wilcox, that's all _Arthur _asked you to do. So what the hell happened?"

Joan's voice was cool, but her words cut me down to the core; I felt my jaw clench in regret. She was right, for once in her damned career she was fucking right. That was all I had to do and I couldn't do it, the odds weren't in our favor sure, but then again when were they ever?

I opened my mouth to make a snarky comment, but closed it again, rethinking my statement.

"You're right."

Was all I could come up with, because the cold hard truth was that Joan _is _right and there was no way for me to squeeze myself out of it, nor did I want to. I wanted to feel the pain, the regret, the remorse, the guilt, because all of that combined wouldn't make up for how much pain Annie went through and was still going through.

"Damn right I am."

She didn't hesitate to respond and I heard her pass the phone off to someone, probably Arthur and took a deep breath, Joan was bad, but Arthur would relentlessly bash me in every way that was deemed politically correct; I had threatened to go for his wife's job, after all. I deserved it.

"Jai I'm going to ask you the same question Joan asked you. What the hell happened?"

I rubbed my hand across my face, scrubbing it of exhaustion.

"We were fine, we had gotten all of the members of the Peace Corp onto the helicopter and Annie had volunteered to cover the rear while I got everyone organized. It seemed simple enough, but . . . God damn it she was so close!" My voice broke, the fury pouring out of me, "She was so damn close to me that I saw as that god damn piece of metal entered her body, I _saw _the look on her face, shock, pain, and above all, doubt; she doubted she would ever make it . . .

My voice trailed off and I felt a few hot tears spill down my cheeks, creating clear tracks on my otherwise grimy face.

"She doubted that she would break our promise, that we would finish this together. She promised," my voice sounded strange, foreign even to my ears. It didn't sound like a cocky, arrogant bastard, nor did it sound like the "Prince of Langley" as I was so affectionately known, it sounded like the voice of a little boy that just god his hopes dashed and stomped on.

There was a pause, and I recollected myself, wiping the tears away.

"Jai," Joan again, "I'm sorry."

Three little words, but coming from her, it meant that maybe, just maybe, we could possibly get along.

"My fault, you're right that was all I had to do and I couldn't do it. There was a sniper in the distance, and he fired, I'm pretty sure one of the pilots caught him in the chest, so he paid his dues."

"Has there been any word on her condition?"

"No, they just brought Auggie in a while ago, I think he's coming back Joan."

Light pause, "That's good to hear. Jai," I heard her sigh, "despite the minimal damage, I don't doubt that you tried to do your best work and gave it your all and for that I thank you. Annie's a tough operative, she'll pull through."

"Thank you, Joan."

"Call me when you get to the airport, flight's in a few days from now I've scheduled a car to pick you both up, all you have to do is say when," Arthur's voice, hard, still cold.

I nodded, "Thank you."

The line went dead.

I was left alone to think . . . sometimes the most dangerous place for a man is his mind . . .


	14. Chapter 14

Joan POV

I hung up the phone, a sense of finality and unease settling over me. Of course, as if a rat drawn to cheese, Arthur picks up on it.

"This isn't your fault."

He pegged me with a stare, not a cold one, but loving, his eyes sparkling slightly.

"I know that. I just can't shake the feeling that there was something I should've done but didn't do," I began, flipping through the files stacked up on my desk until I found Annie and Jai's mission. It was simple, most of it blacked out, but from what I could digest, the risk level was extremely high.

"Put it behind you, we both know that Annie won't flat line on the operating table, hell will freeze over when she gives up."

"How do you know her so well?"

He leaned in closer, and whispered in my ear, "Because she is just like you when you first joined the agency. You never gave up, and I would bet my job and my right hand on the fact that Annie won't give up."

I smiled as he pressed his lips against my cheek.

"Don't you have work to do, Ms. Campbell?" He asked, his tone teasing.

I shoved him off my desk with a smile on my face as he walked out the door, tossing me a grin as he walked out.

No matter what he said, I knew that there was a reason this happened, that it wasn't a coincidence that Auggie was targeted. I would find out, after all, Arthur did say that I never gave up easily and he was right. I wouldn't give up until I knew the reason why this happened.

Auggie POV

"How is he doing?"

"They had to sedate him, he wouldn't listen to what any of us said and kept trying to get out of the door."

A wry chuckle, "Sounds like Auggie. Any major injuries?"

"A sprained ankle from all the running and a little bit of dehydration; otherwise the nurses told me that he was fine."

The voices floated into my semi-consciousness, half of my brain still blurred from the sedative they had given me.

Never the less, I tried to piece the voices together; the first one had been Jai, that wasn't too hard, his sarcastic tone and faint scent of Old Spice gave it away. The second one, female, was unmistakably Parker.

Parker? What was she doing here? Shouldn't she be on the helicopters back . . . Before I could finish my thought, the events of what might've been a few hours or even a few days ago flashed across my mind. Annie, bleeding out, her blood slick against my hands, the sharp sound of bullets flying, shells landing, explosions, suffocating heat . . . a fresh new hell.

I forced my sightless eyes open, and opened my mouth, swallowing a few times.

"Annie," it came out as a dry croak, "Where is Annie?"

I heard the scrape of a metal chair against tile, and the scent of adrenaline mixed with Old Spice hit me.

"Auggie, you need to rest. The doctor and nurses said your stress levels are way to high."

"Jai," I cleared my throat, "is she . . . is she alive?"

I waited for an answer, partially sitting up and leaning against my elbows, ready to charge right past him even though I had no clue where the hell the door was.

He didn't answer, and I felt the tension in the room increase, if it were even possible.

"She's not . . . no," I whispered, horrified, "she isn't dead?"

That last part came out below a whisper, almost inaudible.

"Annie isn't out of surgery yet," Jai told me, his hand coming to rest on my forearm, "Damn it, lay back down," with that said, he gently pushed me back down.

"She'll be alright, she has to be," I whispered, trying to convince myself more than Jai.

"She gave her life for us."

I turned my head towards that voice; Parker. I had almost forgotten that she was still here, my emotions were running so high that my thoughts were clouded with Annie.

"She was so brave too . . . she didn't once say that it hurt when it looked like it did . . . a lot . . . "

Her voice trailed off, and I heard her sniffle softly. I mentally sighed, shoving part of my walls back up, she needed me to help her through this. It was obvious that she was going into shock.

"Jai, can I have a minute?"

There was a beat of brief silence, "Yeah sure. I'll be right outside if you need me."

As soon as I heard the door close, I turned towards Parker.

"Listen to me, this was her choice, it wasn't your fault, do you understand that, Parker?" I dredged up my old Spec. Ops confidence, and hoped that I sounded convincing.

"But if we had all moved just a little bit faster she wouldn't be -

"No matter which way you look at it, she would be hurt. Parker this isn't your fault, Annie knew that this was a possibility, and she chose to do this. You have to forgive yourself for something you never meant to happen, it wasn't your fault to begin with."

There was a small measure of silence.

"There was so much blood," she whispered quietly, "it was like straight out of a horror movie, and the sound of bullets ricocheting off of the helicopters it was terrifying."

I slowly slid my hand over the bed and caught hers, squeezing it tightly, "I know. I also know that you'll get through this and Jai probably has a plane ticket waiting for you. The best thing for you to do is go back home and try and live past this. It won't be easy, but it's not impossible either. I'm here if you need me."

I could almost feel her looking me up and down, "Auggie, someone else needs you so much more than me. Don't throw that chance away."

Annie POV

I felt as if I were floating along in the sky, weightless, painless, just sweet freedom encircling me in it's sweet embrace.

There were no more bullets, no more missions, no more stress, and above all, no more heart ache. Everything, for once, was perfectly fine and sweet.

I tried to open my eyes and look around me, but to my dismay, there was nothing there, it was as if I were caught in limbo.

How did I get here? I wondered, trying to turn but ending up staying in one place. I thought hard, making myself try and remember the past, only to come up with horrifying images of blood, and screams of terror.

I winced at the memory, but felt as if those memory weren't mine . . . they were someone else's. I saw myself, running across a desert landscape towards a helicopter, sprinting as if my life depended on it . . . did my life depend on it? I couldn't remember. Suddenly, I saw a bright glimmer of metal sail through the air and my eyes went wide as it entered her, my, body. I heard the muffled scream of agony, I saw her stop for a second and then continue her dead sprint.

I felt bad for the girl, so much pain, so much death was happening all around her. Then,

by some miracle, she managed to get to the helicopter and a man pulled her in; dark skinned, hard brown eyes, his image was blurry, but I could make out the distinct features that were Jai.

I watched as Jai tried to stop the flow of crimson blood but watched with my mouth wide as it poured out of my body in rivers. Then, another man, this one with soft brown eyes, darting back and forth in panic, a lean body, and a light tan, pushed him aside. Those eyes were sightless, I realized, but when they landed on my body, I felt a fire spark within me.

Suddenly, his image cleared and I was able to make out who he was; Auggie. August 'Auggie' Anderson, head of tech ops, my best friend, love, and mentor, all rolled into one. Days of flying around the world with him whispering in my ear, nights of hanging out at the bar, just laughing, filtered through my mind.

Auggie. I looked around, shaking myself out of the war zone, and back into where ever here was . . . I had to get back to where they were, I had to get back to where _Auggie _was.


	15. Chapter 15

Doctor POV

I looked nervously at the monitors; her heart beat was getting fainter and fainter. The operating table, a few hours ago pristine and sterile, not bloody; I turned towards the tray the nurses had brought in, the tools were in just about the same condition.

"Come on," I whispered quietly, "nurse, give her a shock, see if we can get that heart beat going strong again."

She looked apprehensive and I didn't blame her. There was too much blood lose, too much damage . . .

After a few seconds, she shrugged and gave it a shot. I had already sewn up the wound, she would probably have those scars forever if she lived through this. I watched as her body jerked up from the electric shock, her lips parted slightly.

She was beautiful, I didn't doubt that. Her blonde hair, though covered with the surgical cap, still shone through slightly. I waited, hoping that she would respond, but when her monitor's showed no signs of change, I signaled for the nurse to try a higher voltage.

I had made a promise, I would do everything in my power to make sure that this woman lived; she didn't deserve to die . . . sure, I had no idea who she was other than the information that the two men had provided the nurses in a hurry, but from what I could figure out, this woman didn't deserve to die. Then again, that was the funny thing about being a doctor; you don't really get to decide who gets to live and who dies, it's almost by pure chance.

Her body jerked up again, the air was so thick with anticipation and hope that you could practically cut it with a knife and serve it on a platter. The nurses and doctors around me all wore expressions of slight hope, some of the rookie nurses had clasped their hands together in a silent prayer.

Finally, after what seemed like a day, the monitor began to hum into a steady rhythm. The sigh of relief was so subtle yet so loud in the otherwise silent room. I smiled behind my mask, maybe I could make a difference after all.

"Get her to the room next to Mr. Anderson's," I whispered hoarsely, the smile still present.

Jai POV

I paced the halls of the hospital right outside of the surgical center, my wind whirling and humming from the lack of sleep and the need to know what happened; the need was so strong that it was like a war was going on in my head.

_She'll be fine. She said that we would finish this together. I am _not _leaving here without her._

A snarky voice in the back of my head replied, When did you start to care this much about a girl, Wilcox? Annie worm her way into your heart?

I quickly shoved that part of me away; in a way, she had really changed me for the better, I learned something from this little op, something I never realized I _could _learn. I actually needed someone. I was so used to stepping on all of my "friends" to get to where I am today, living in my father's tainted shadow, I had been pushing forward so fast that I hadn't stopped and looked around and realized . . . I was damn lucky.

I had a pretty good job, paid well, not much work in the field unless I specifically requested it . . . maybe this was my way out of that bastard's shadow, just to enjoy what I have now and do my job.

The doors sprung open, causing me to jerk out of my brief realization, the nurse walking out looked exhausted, but there was a smile on her face.

"How is she?" My voice sounded cracked.

"Ms. Walker should be fine once she passes the 24 hour mark. Sir, can I get you a cot or something? You look exhausted."

A refusal was on the tip of my tongue, but I thought about it for a second as the waves of relief crashed over me. I knew she wouldn't just give up, she fought for her life . . . she kept her promise.

"Can you put it in Anderson's room? I need to talk to him anyways. Thank you, so much," I whispered, the war in my head coming to a stand still.

Annie was ok, she wasn't going to die, I realized, and felt exhaustion suddenly begin to take over. But I had a few more things to do before I packed it in.

"Can I see her?"

Hesitation crossed her face, "We just moved her, I don't think it would be such a good idea. You can see her in a few hours."

I was about to protest but suddenly the room began to sway slightly, making me stumble.

"Sir? Have you been checked out yet?"

Her voice was extremely faint, fading in and out.

I half nodded and half shook my head as I collapsed into a chair.

"Sir, let's get you into a room," I felt her arms wrap around my waste and hall me up.

"Auggie's room," I whispered, "bring me to his room."

Light headed, slight nausea and of course, exhaustion, was taking it's toll . . . a little too soon I might add.

To my relief she didn't protest and we began a painfully long walk back to Auggie's room. He's going to get a kick out of seeing you like this, I thought as we entered his room. Thankfully, there was another bed already placed in his room.

"Jai?"

I swallowed and dragged my eyes from the floor up to his face, watching as his eyes darted around.

"Yeah. I'm on your left," I whispered as the nurse let me climb onto the bed myself.

The room began to blur, black spots filtering into my vision, my body sighing contentedly as the mattress cushioned it. I wanted to sleep for a day, a week, hell a month. But I couldn't, not yet.

"Annie?"

"Out of surgery, see her in a few," I whispered, feeling a dull pain in my arm, I turned to see the nurse fixing up an IV.

"Wilcox, you alright?"

Fine, I thought, as the black spots got bigger and bigger and finally, I was dragged under into a dreamless, blissful sleep.

Annie POV

The sounds of monitors humming reached my ears first, the beeping slowly becoming unbearable.

I breathed in deeply, my eyes still closed; the smell of bleach and hospital mixed with a slight tang of desert sand reached my senses. I was in a hospital . . . probably still in Eritrea.

"She'll be waking up soon. Any of her friends up to seeing her?"

A voice I didn't recognize, male, mid thirties probably.

Rustle of papers on a clipboard, scratching of a pen on paper.

"Mr. Wilcox may have a concussion, but Mr. Anderson seems to be perfectly fine."

"Where is he?"

"He's actually waiting outside, has been for a few minutes now."

A sigh, "Send him in."

My heart began to beat wildly and the monitors responded, the sound of footsteps retreating suddenly stopped, and they came back.

"Is she alright?"

"She's fine, I'm guessing she can hear us. Can you hear us, Ms. Walker?"

I nodded, cracking my eyes open. Immediately, bright white light filtered through, making me immediately wish for the darkness again, but forced my eyes all the way open. The faces next to my bedside were blurry, after a few blinks, I saw a nurse and a doctor looking curiously down at me.

"Auggie?"

The nurse nodded, "I'll send him in."

I looked at the doctor as the nurse retreated, "How badly am I banged up, Doc?"

"You're a very lucky woman, Ms. Walker, the first bullet slid cleaning through your side, but the second one was tricky; it managed to get lodged in between two ribs, we cleaned up the splinters but since you stopped breathing for about seven minutes during surgery, I'm not sure you'll make a full recovery until you hit the 24 hour mark."

I swallowed, my throat dry and strained. Everything hurt, I realized that now after waking up a little bit more. There were thick bandages around my torso and I would bet my life that there were at least five bruises going up my body.

I heard a gentle tap of a cane at my door and thought it was just about the sweetest sound in the world. I looked up, my eyes wide with hope as a certain slightly battered brown eyed blind man walked into my room.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone," the doctor stepped out of the room, tossing over his shoulder, "no strenuous activities, Ms. Walker."

I chuckled softly, and watched as Auggie's ears immediately perked up. The heart monitor began to rapidly beat again, speeding up to a Presto.

"Annie?"

"Over here," I called out softly, and watched as he found the chair beside my bed and folded himself into it.

He pulled the chair up closer, sliding his hand up to catch mine. Almost as if on cue, the monitor gave a loud beep, startling us both.

"Did I just make your heart skip a beat, Ms. Walker?" Auggie asked, trying his best to sound playful and care free.

I laughed, "I believe you did, Mr. Anderson."

He gave me a small smile, one I felt like I hadn't seen in a decade.

Then, the mood shifted, things becoming serious once more.

"Annie, I'm sorry," he whispered, barely audible.

I looked up, startled at the quick change in emotion, his voice sounded small, unsure, childlike, almost.

"Why are you sorry?" I asked incredulously.

He looked up, his eyes meeting mine for a brief second before they focused on the wall behind me; how did he do that?

"If I had anticipated something like this happening sooner, maybe you wouldn't be -

I cut him off, "No, Auggie. Don't even go there; no one could've suspected this from happening, it was a freakish thing. It wasn't your fault that what happened . . . happened. You didn't shoot me." I reminded him, my voice hard, leaving no room for argument, but of course, he did.

"Annie, that bullet wasn't meant for you. You weren't even suppose to be here; you were suppose to be home safe," he insisted, giving my hand a squeeze.

"Safe?" I squeaked, he had no idea, "Auggie, when you left me I was far from safe. I was running from op to op, flight to flight, hell car to freaking car. I was a lot of things in those four months, but I was never _safe_. When you left i-

I stopped myself, feeling tears spring into my eyes. Those last four months were a blur of bullets, screams, and commercial airlines and back ally roads.

"You what, Annie," he prompted, leaning his head closer towards me, making my heart beat wildly.

"I missed you," I choked out.

I lifted my chin up to meet his eyes, a warm brown, and was that a tear I saw?

"I missed you too."

I wanted to laugh at how stable his voice sounded.

"But not enough to call or even email me," I finished for him, turning away slightly. We were back to where we started. Me looking for answers, and him dodging them.

He didn't have a reply for that one. Instead, he leaned away again, at a loss for words. I had finally rendered Augest Anderson speechless. That was a huge accomplishment; only, it didn't feel like one.

"Do you want to know the real reason I left for Eritrea?"

"Parker, right?"

He shook his head slowly.

"The news you got from the doctor?"

"That's part of it. But I'll admit, I probably could've gotten over that in a few days."

"So why did you just pick up and leave for four months? Would you have even come back if I hadn't come to get you?'

As soon as I said those words, I wanted to shove them back in my mouth.

I watched as his train of thought stopped.

"You came back here to get me? I thought you and Jai were here on a op."

I hesitated, cat's out of the bag, damn morphine.

"We were, I jumped on this one because I knew that no matter how slim the chance, there was still a slight chance that I would see you . . . make sure that you were OK, happy . . . and ask if you . . . if you wanted to come back. To Langley."


	16. Chapter 16

Annie POV

I expected the awkward pause after my question; what I didn't expect was for it to hurt this much. Just knowing that he had to think a little bit longer whether or not he should still stay here even when his life was jeopardized instead of coming home was a reality check I never wanted to face.

Because the sad truth was what if he really loved her? What if loves her enough to stay with her even after what just happened?

"Annie, it's complicated. I don't know if Joan'll take me back after I just dropped off the grid like that," he began, his thumb was rubbing circles into the back of my hand, a gesture meant to comfort.

"You know she'll always have you, Auggie. It's your choice whether or not you come back," I told him truthfully, looking into the sightless brown eyes I loved.

"I want to," he whispered quietly, "even if it means finally facing reality."

I smiled, "So will you?"

"Would that make you happy, Ms. Walker?"

A playful smirk played across his lips.

I nodded, "Yes, Mr. Anderson, it would."

"Then, by all means, I will come back. Plus, I think you owe me a couple of coffees from starbucks dating back to oh . . . I don't know . . . four months ago?"

And just like that, it was like he had never left. We were back to joking around, the old hurt of being apart almost gone, but not quite. There was still a bit of this awkward conversation I hadn't yet thrown at him.

"Auggie," I began after we both stopped laughing, "what's the real reason you went? I mean I get that you were really thrown when your doctor called but you wouldn't run away from that. Plus, Parker would've came back so you knew you were sort of guaranteed a second chance . . . so why did you leave?"

There it was, the awkward air of silence hung between us once again.

I waited patiently for his answer, my side throbbing while the numbness slowly wore off from the pain medication.

"The real reason?"

I nodded, and surprisingly, he heard that too.

"I left, Annie Walker," he began, taking a deep breath, "because I finally realized that the one woman keeping me grounded and almost completely sane, would never return the feelings I have for her. After I got the call from the doctor, Parker called, and I took that as a sign from the universe that she was my second best. If I couldn't have the woman I love with my life, I can at least have a woman that I love with half my life. Make any sense?"

I swallowed against the lump in my throat, "Yes, it does."

"So I picked up what I needed and left. I thought I could truly be happy until said woman became the 'new translator' I was supposed to pick up. Then things got confusing again."

I laughed, my throat clogged up with tears. Could I have been so blind to not realize that the man that became my friend my first day at the CIA who shortly turned into my best friend, loves me?

"What I'm trying to say here, Annie, is that I gave up for once . . . I gave up on . . . us . . . when there wasn't even an _us _yet because I was too damn afraid that there would never be an _us_. Guess terminating our communication wasn't such a great way to go about it huh?"

"No, it wasn't," I told him, giving his hand a squeeze.

He smiled again, "But hey, I figured it out eventually. So Annie Walker, one of the most beautiful agents in the CIA, or so I'm told, what is your reply to my extremely long lecture of how mentally fucked up I am?"

I couldn't help it, I full on laughed, making my side ache and pins and needles shoot up my waist.

"I would say that for a guy that's known for being super intuitive, you're just the opposite. I love you, Auggie, I always have," I told him, a smile on my face.

"I don't know whether or not to say I love you back or to be offended that you basically called me the complete opposite of what I am. Ms. Walker, I'll have you know that I am super _intuitive _as you so awkwardly put it. But regardless," he paused, catching my eyes even though I knew for a fact he couldn't see me, "I want us to work, so let's take it slow, alright? See where this goes."

I nodded, I couldn't agree more.

Auggie POV

The faint shift in the air around us made me assume that she agreed, and smiled at her. I wanted to kiss her, but that would probably go against what I just preached about.

I heard a knock on the door and instinctively turned towards it, feeling content, finally.

"I don't mean to interrupt," that deep baritone, the faint smell of Old Spice; Jai.

"No it's fine," Annie automatically answered.

Foot steps approaching, and then the sound of a chair being scrapped back next to me; the smell of Old Spice got stronger, yup, definitely Jai.

"Annie, you alright?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. The morphine and the pain meds are starting to wear off though," she answered, surprisingly semi honestly.

I had been monitoring her breathing pretty closely and the sharp uneven intakes of breath made me take a guess that her wounds hurt a lot more than she was letting on.

"Maybe you should rest for a while, I'll go and get the nurse to come and give you your medication," Jai implied smoothly.

Subtly, his hand brushed against mine and tapped out in Morse code, SOS.

"No, it's fine, really," she tried to reassure him, but it was obvious part of her agreed.

"Jai's right actually. I shouldn't have stayed that long," I chimed in, my hand trailing up her wrist and onto her shoulder, resting on her cheek. I leaned in and gave her a soft, barely there kiss, and stood up.

I took the silence from her as my way out and let Jai lead me out of the room. I found the door's handle and shut it softly.

"What's going on?" I asked, my voice low.

"No, not here," Jai whispered, and lead me down a flight of stairs, turning sharp corners until more voices floated around us.

"Where are we going?" I asked, I hadn't memorized the layout of the hospital yet, considering I was strapped down to a bed for the most part.

The swift woosh of the gates opening signaled that we were headed outside of the hospital.

"There's a cup of coffee at your 10 on a table, chair is at your 9, sit down and have a few sips, I'll join you shortly."

With that said, Jai's hand quickly left my elbow as if it were on fire. I did as I was told; it was either listen to the arrogant bastard and figure out what the hell was going on. I knew the sense of peace wasn't going to last.

After a few minutes of taking sips from the now cold coffee, I heard the chair in front of me being pulled back.

"Napkin is at your three o'clock, inside is a flash drive Joan took the liberty into mailing over to us."

I stealthily took the napkin and slid the flash drive up my sleeve, using the napkin to wipe my mouth.

"Anyone out here?"

"Nope just us, but you can never be too careful," Jai replied, clearing his throat.

"How deep are we in?"

There was a pause, "Too deep to back out now, Anderson."

Annie POV

The kiss, if you could even call it a kiss, still left me breathless, wide-eyed, and shocked to the bone. Did all of this just happen in a few minutes? There's no way; my brain just simply couldn't process it all.

Auggie and I were together; after all those months being apart and wishing that he was back at my side, he was mine. Not just my best friend, but potentially mine for the keeping.

Yet, underneath that happiness, there was a sense of dread; this isn't over, that sly voice said, no, Annie, this is far from over. A group targeted Auggie; why, you still have no idea. Plus there was the way Jai suddenly appeared and then just as suddenly left with Auggie . . . they had plans to discuss, probably.

"Excuse me, Ms. Walker? I have your pain meds," a smiling nurse whispered and handed them to me along with a glass of water.

I swallowed them dry, taking cautious little sips of the water, hoping that everything was going to alright . . . but of course it wasn't going to be.


	17. Chapter 17

**May 28 is Memorial Day but guess what…it's my birthday too! :D yay! **

_2 weeks and three days later_

Annie POV

I adjusted the strap on my shoulder, wincing as it bumped into my still heavily bandaged hip. The doctors said that it would take a while to heal and I was definitely not allowed to do any "strenuous activities" for a month, but carrying my own bag couldn't be that bad, right?

My fingers flexed on my carryon handle, somehow I had ended up with more supplies than I had come to Eritrea with.

"Auggie, you got everything?" Jai asked for what was about the umpteenth time in the last half an hour.

The man in question nodded, but just barely. He seemed to be on edge just about every time I see him now, ever since that little kiss, if you could even call it that, he's been different.

"When's the damn car getting here, Jai? Or did you forget to call Joseph because you were too busy making sure that I have all this crap," Auggie barked out.

He sounded harsher now, the slightest thing could somehow set him off. I had never seen this side of him in a long time. To be quite frank, it was shocking. He hadn't said more than seven words to me when he had visited me over the course of the two weeks, asking me if I'm feeling better as his introduction, but once he got that answer it was as if he wanted almost nothing to do with me and shut off.

Suddenly, I caught a glimpse of a black van headed towards us and quickly stood up straighter, not caring if my wounds squeaked in pain. Something wasn't right. What the hell was in the carryon that Jai made me take?

Jai, of course, headed in first, easily swinging his luggage into the trunk in one swift movement. He offered his help to Auggie, but Auggie roughly pushed his hand away and climbed in without his assistance.

That left me.

I schooled my features into a blank mask, but neither Alpha male bought it.

"Annie, let me-" they both stopped at the same time, shooting daggers at each other, or at least in the right direction.

"Annie," Jai tried again, "give me the carryon."

I handed it to him, wary, my eyes on Auggie the whole time. He seemed to be bristling with unsaid anger as he withdrew his hand. I climbed on and sat in front of them, wincing as my hip bumped the arm rest.

"You OK?" Auggie asked, a different variation of the classic _how are you _I had been getting for two weeks.

"Yeah, just bumped my hip," I mumbled, staring straight ahead.

"Airport, please," Jai growled from behind me, he sounded tense, much too tense for a simple ride to the airport.

"Excuse me, can we put up the sound proof barrier?" I asked the driver politely.

He nodded, "Of course, Operative Walker."

Said barrier slowly slipped up between the driver and us three. As soon as it reached the roof of the car, I turned behind me despite the pain and glared at the two men.

"Ok, I've let you two brush off this subject for two weeks now because I was either too god damn tired to pursue it or both of you just left. Now you're going to tell me what the _hell _is going to go down or I swear I am jumping out of this car and walking back to the hospital."

"An what are you going to do there?" Jai asked smugly, but there was a small glint of apprehension in his eyes.

"Jai she has a right to know," Auggie growled, his voice low.

"No, if we tell her she'll be more of a liability than an asset. Remember what Joan said?"

I was so frustrated I was about to explode with anger; it took all my reserve and somewhat stable self control to make me shut up and watch their mini debate.

"If she doesn't know this could end badly," Auggie answered back.

"Do you two know how frustrating," I began, glaring at Jai, "it is to listen to a conversation that concerns your safety but you don't know what the hell it's about?"

Jai stopped, as if noticing that I was there.

"Annie, just trust me, alright? You trusted me back at the camp, trust me now," he whispered quietly, his eyes turning from cold to slightly softer.

"She has a right to know and if you don't tell her than I will," Auggie intervened, "plus she isn't going to go on the plane without us."

"Wait what?" I hissed, "Where are you two going?"

"Just trust me, Annie, you're too hurt and drained to come with us. You'd only get hurt," Jai tried to reason with me and calm me down at the same time; he bit off too much he could chew.

"Jai, I trust you but I need to know what's going on especially if it concerns me. You can't expect me to just leave you two here or watch you guys go into enemy territory alone."

"We won't be alone," Jai argued weakly, his resolve dissolving.

"For God's sake, Jai, shut the hell up and let me speak!" Auggie practically yelled.

He fixed me with this sightless eyes of his, and offered up a small smile.

"Hey Annie," he began, "been a crappy best friend lately, huh?"

I hesitated, "A little bit, what's going on, Auggie?"

He took a deep breath and I looked at Jai, who was now slumped against the seat in defeat, waving his hand as a sign of defeat.

"Jai pulled me aside the first day you woke up and he told me . . . a few things. I called Joan to confirm what he said and when she did, I automatically just shut down. Annie, there's a mole in the CIA, the attack that was made on the camp I was in was no coincidence, which you probably already know. But what you don't is that if they were able to smuggle me out they would've tortured me extensively for information on your whereabouts, Arthur's and Joan's.

"In the past two weeks, Jai and I have been going over the little information the agency was able to gather. Joan called us in periodically and we have a flight to London while you're on the flight to DC. No, Annie don't argue with me, you're in no shape to do this. Once you're back in Langley, Joan's going to give you a few weeks to recover and then she'll read you in. Is that a good enough explanation?"

I looked at him in shock, processing the information over and over again.

"But why would they want to get information on me? I get Arthur and Joan, but I'm just a newbie, barely been in the field for two years."

"Annie, you've seen more action than most operatives I've known for years," Jai finally chimed in, the look of defeat still on his face.

"You've made a lot of friends," Auggie continued, "and a lot of enemies. You've seen a lot of things that you shouldn't have seen and you know people that you shouldn't know."

"You sound like a fortune cookie, Anderson," Jai growled.

"So you expect me to go on the flight home without you guys?" I asked, "But you both need your rest too! I'm not the only one that injured!"  
>"This need immediate attention, and since we're already overseas, there's no need for us to go back for our things. Plus we're meeting a team outside of London and we're going to run down the trail while it's still hot. Can't let it go cold and going home and resting is a luxury we don't have," Jai explained carefully.<p>

This was ridiculous, I was about to lose him . . . again. Just when I thought that maybe things would be alright, another twist was added to make my life more difficult. Only this time, I realized that I was losing another friend as well; Jai. Yes, he's an asshole and an arrogant bastard, but at other times, he was supportive, and understanding. I wasn't just losing a love and a best friend, but another friend as well.

"How his risk is this mission?" I asked, looking up from my lap.

"It's off book," Jai answered, as if that would reassure me anymore.

"So you guys are basically going in with whatever you have and that's about it?"

He nodded.

"Ok, so what's with the extra carryon I have?"

Auggie smiled, "I packed you a few . . . defensive objects in there in case you run into any trouble on your flight. Don't worry, the suitcase should go through security fine."

I sighed, turning to face front again, the steady pain pulsing through my body that I had been ignoring came crashing back, reminding me that I forgot to take my pain meds.

"I'll be joining you guys in about a month?" I asked, my voice hard.

"Yeah, should be," Jai answered.

I felt Auggie's hand on my shoulder, as he gave it a reassuring squeeze, he whispered in my ear, "Annie, everything's going to be fine. I'll call this time."

I laughed, "Don't make a promise that you can't keep, Auggie. You know better."

I sounded just as defeated as Jai had a few minutes ago. How could he keep this from me? Didn't he think that I had a right to know if my life was being threatened?  
>"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" I asked him quietly.<p>

"I was trying to-

Suddenly there was a knock on the glass and we both jumped as it slid back down.

"Airport?"

I nodded, "Thanks."

Auggie handed me my ticket and as he got out, helped me out as well. I dragged my carryon out from behind them and gave them both a hard look. I still felt slightly betrayed.

"Come on," Auggie breathed into my ear as he placed his hand on my elbow.

Suddenly I felt as if four months of hell hadn't passed, I felt like we were back in Langley, walking the hall to get coffee and talking about the latest gossip. But as soon as I opened my eyes, I was back in the present, the sun beating down on us as we stood outside of the airport.

I nodded and lead him into the airport.

We all went through check-ins with no problem, but when it was time to go to our separate gates, things got complicated.

I looked at Auggie, "You're gate is upahead, at your 3 o'clock. Stay safe."

I felt tears gather in my eyes, and as I turned away, he grabbed my arm, pulling me into a fierce embrace. I clung onto him with the same amount of desperation; to hell with morals and protocol, I might not see him for another month, maybe even more.

"I will, don't worry. Just promise me that you'll take care of yourself."

I nodded, sniffing quietly.

"Tell me why you're going again," I whispered in his ear.

"Because I'm already a target, they'll come to me so we don't have to look for them," he whispered back, our voice hushed in the otherwise chaotic and loud airport.

"I think I love you, Auggie Anderson," I told him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"I think I love you too, Annie Walker. Which is why I'll come back and change that 'think' to 'know.'"

With that said, he pulled back and pressed a firm kiss to my lips, and I responded just as hungrily. But just as quickly as it came, it disappeared and he was out of my arms, following Jai to their gate.

I watched him disappear in the crowd of people, tears falling down my cheeks. This may be the last time I see him, I thought, as I turned away and boarded my flight to Langley while he boarded his with Jai to the UK, on opposite sides of the ocean.


End file.
